Fangirl 101
by Sita Masters
Summary: I get dropped into the Marvel 'Verse. Spoilers: starts after "The Asset" but then goes through "FZZT."
1. Wake Up

I opened my eyes, wincing at the harsh fluorescents. The back of my head felt like it had been hit by a sledgehammer. Where was I? I sat up slowly, looking around with a gasp. No flipping way. I was there. On the "bus." And from the looks of it, I was in Fitzsimmons lab. It was quiet and mostly dark. Finding a clock, I saw it was three AM. Everyone must have been asleep.

Well, almost everyone.

"Turn slowly, hands up."

I had to stop the geeky fangirl moment that was dying to erupt. I knew that voice. Slowly, I turned, hands raised as requested. "Hi there."

Coulson had a gun trained on me, looking ever calm and in control of the situation. "How were you able to get on this plane midflight?"

"That, I don't know. But oh my god, you're totally Agent Coulson. I cannot freaking believe it!" Well, I'd held out on the fangirl moment as long as I could.

"And who are you?"

I extended my hand. "Sita. Nice to meet you!"

He took in my appearance. Blue jeans, grey tee, brown hair pulled back in a ponytail and black rimmed glasses helping my blue eyes focus. Slowly, he put away his gun and shook my hand. "Well, Sita. First thing is first. What are you doing here?"

"Having the best freaking dream ever, I would imagine." To check, I pinched myself. "OW! Hey! I'm not dreaming?" I tilted my head. "Whoa. This means the dimensional thingy ma-bobber worked." My eyes widened. "Ooo! Let's get FitzSimmons! They might be able to help!"

Undoubtedly, this was not the strangest thing he'd heard. He studied me a little more. "Very well. This way." Motioning, he lead me up the spiral staircase.

"Dude, Fury should have totally let you have the fish tank." I plopped onto a couch as Coulson stopped in his tracks.

"How did you know about that?"

"Let's get everyone in here and I'll just explain all at once."

()

The Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. were standing in front of me. They were really there. And my eyes were glued to Agent Ward. Could you blame me? Hello, eye candy.

Coulson cleared his throat. "So, you were going to explain?"

"Huh?" I pulled my gaze from Ward. "Oh yeah!" I sat up a little straighter. "So, the deal is, I'm not from here. This dimension. In my world, you guys aren't real. You're characters in a story. How I got here was a stupid find on eBay. I thought it was just a toy but when I activated it, I ended up here."

Skye smiled brightly. "We're characters?"

I nodded. "Yup."

Fitz looked giddy. "Did you bring the device?"

Simmons was wide eyed. "Would you mind a few blood tests? To see if the dimensional shifts affect physiology?"

I winced. "Needles?"

Ward crossed his arms. "There are other ways to get what we need."

I licked my lips. "You wanna pin me down?" I wiggled my eyebrows. "I promise to resist if you want."

He shifted uncomfortably. "That's…"

Coulson stepped up. "It's late. I say we get our guest a place to sleep and hash this out in the daylight."

May nodded. "I'm going to stay on the stick. She can use my bunk. It's right next to Ward's in case she tries anything."

"Or I could just sleep with Agent Ward," I offered.

Coulson tried to hide his smile. "I think May's bunk will be sufficient."

()

I couldn't sleep. Not here. Not with Agent Ward right next door. I'd heard the door to his bunk close and wondered what he wore to bed. May's bunk was boring. She didn't have anything personal decorating her area. Of course, if you were trying to move on from your past, you wouldn't want reminders all around you.

Sighing, I tapped on the wall connecting the bunk to Ward. I was horrible at Morse code. I was trying to tap out something like "I need a sandwich" but I'm sure it came out "Crocodile baggage." Whatever it was, it got his attention. The door to his bunk opened and soon after, so did mine. He had a look of annoyance about him. Still cute.

"What are you doing?" he grumbled.

"Morse code?"

"That has to be the worst I have ever heard."

"But you heard it. What did it say?"

"'Crazy banana fort.'" He didn't look amused.

"Huh. That was pretty close." I smiled and stood, stepping up to him. "Hey, I know you don't know me, but I know you. Sort of. I mean, I follow your story. It's weird, I know. But you can trust me. I promise."

"You follow my story." He shook his head. "I still can't wrap my head around that."

"Really? Then wrap your head around this." Before he could think, I leaned in, pressing my lips to his. He hesitated before finally kissing back. I was kissing Agent Grant Ward.

After a moment, he grabbed my wrists and held me back some. "What are you doing?"

"Living the dream?" I smiled.

A crashing noise shook the plane, sending me tumbling into Ward's arms. He steadied us before turning back to his training. "Stay here," he instructed.

"Fat chance." I followed him out into the main area where Coulson was already heading to the cockpit. "We're under fire. Buckle in. May's heading us to a safe zone."

Ward glared at me. "What did you do?"

My eyes were wide. "Hey, this isn't me!"

"Just get her buckled in and we'll interrogate when we get to HQ," Coulson instructed.

I swallowed thickly at the notion. These were Agents. Real ones. And they were the best. I really didn't want to be on the other end of an interrogation. Unless it involved truth serum…


	2. It's Real

Note: Lyrics from "Cage on the Ground" by Flyleaf

A radio communication from Agent Romanov confirmed I wasn't responsible for the shots. There had been enemy fire close by and we were caught in it. This seemed to ease everyone but Ward. He still had his eye on me. Of course, it may have been because I totally tried to molest him.

I sat with Skye in the main cabin. "So tell me, you totally want to tap that fine agent ass, don't you?"

She blinked, deer in the headlights. "Pardon?"

"Agent Ward." I leaned back. "You totally wanna do him. But I can't blame you. He is ~hot~!"

Her face flushed. "I have no idea what you're talking about. He's like… a robot or something."

"Hey, many mechanical things have helped women. And honey, he can help me _any_ day."

"Oh my god, we are not having this conversation."

"What conversation?" Coulson stepped in, straightening his tie.

I smiled. "Boxers or briefs. Care to weigh in?"

"Depends on the situation." He grabbed three glasses from the bar and pulled out a bottle. "You can't wear boxers with a wetsuit. Just not going to work." He sat across from me. "Scotch?"

I shook my head. "Nah, I'm more of a wine girl." I held up a hand. "Don't sweat it. I'll get it. You pour yours." I hopped up, skipping to the bar. "So, there are things I have to know." I grabbed a sweet red wine and a glass for myself, returning to my seat. "For instance, Lola."

Coulson looked up. "What about Lola?"

"Why that model? I myself would have gone with a Charger rather than a Vette." I sipped my glass, grinning as Coulson smiled.

"She has sentimental value." He sipped his drink as well.

"Thought so. But I'm wondering what kind of sentiment. Don't get me wrong, she's a sweet ride. But I was always a muscle car girl. Give me the ones from the 60's or 70's and I'm a happy girl."

He grinned. "That tells me quite a bit about you."

Skye had a confused look on her face. "It does?"

()

_"~Another dreamer steps onto the stage. He sings his hope and his fear and his rage. As the applause from the crowd start to fade. He hears them swallow the key to his cage.~"_ I sang softly, earbuds plugged in as I sat near Lola with a notebook that Coulson had provided for me. I wasn't going to waste any time. I had to journal. There was one problem though. When I got to writing, I was oblivious to the outside world.

I screamed ever so slightly as Ward tugged out one of the earbuds. "Christ in a cartoon!" I held a hand to my chest. "Don't do that!"

This time he was grinning. He had caught me off guard instead of the other way around. "Sorry."

I shut my binder and paused the iPod that Simmons had loaned me. "No problem. Just going to need a little bit of defibrillation after that."

"You have a really nice voice," he advised me. "Did you sing back home?"

I nodded. "Yeah. Well, karaoke competitions. I used to sing classically but that never really took off."

He sat down on the ground next to me. "Why did you kiss me?"

I grinned. "You're cute. Don't know how long I'll be here. Seemed like a good idea. Of course, lots of things sound good until you do them."

He seemed a bit offended. "The kiss wasn't good?"

"No! No, that's not what I meant!"

"I thought it was at least decent…"

"It was. More than. I just meant, you got all, like, freaky after. Like you've never been molested by a fangirl who was dumped in your dimension." I smiled, hoping that didn't sound as nerdy as I thought it did. "You haven't, right?"

He chuckled. "No. I haven't. I have to admit, I haven't really been around people like you in a while."

"Like me?"

"You know, normal. I'm used to other spies, villains, bad guys and all that. But you… you're not one of those. You're a person. You're just Sita." He glanced over at me, almost appreciative. "It's kinda nice."

I softened. "Glad to hear." I furrowed by brow. "Kinda. I mean, you just told me I'm not really special." I chuckled.

"You have a beautiful voice. I think that's special." He caught my gaze, leaning in a little.

"Prepare for landing," May's voice rang over the intercom system.

"Biscuit eating Barbie dolls!" I cursed. "Thanks, May."

()

We were in the United States. I was pretty sure it was New York, although I had never been. "So what now?" I asked Coulson, a little nervous.

"We're taking a break, refueling and restocking supplies."

I was a little surprised. "You're not taking me in?"

"I think we can handle a fangirl. Skye was a Stark groupie."

"Ugh. I'm not. He's too ego for me. But Captain America? I'm there."

Coulson glowed with pride. "I got to work with him."

()

There was one question I really hadn't answered and that was where the device was that I used to get to them. In all honesty, I didn't know. I had assumed that it had traveled with me, but a scour of the lab had shown no trace of any energy except where I appeared.

"Can you at least describe it?" Fitz hoped.

"That I can." I grabbed a pen and paper. "Okay, so, it's a lot like the Lemarchand's box." Glancing up, I found a few blank stares.

Skye cleared her throat. "Hellraiser. Good movie."

I nodded. "Thank you. So yeah, it's like a puzzle. But one you're supposed to solve. Each piece that falls in seems to trigger a different part of the portal. Like dialing in your GPS." I furiously drew, trying to recall all of it. "Of course, in my dimension, we don't have Tesseract tech so I have no idea what fuels this puppy." I handed over my sketch to Fitz, who placed it on their work table, scanning it and dissecting away. "I'm sorry I don't have more."

Simmons smiled. "It's a start. Gives us something to work with."

Coulson nodded. "Good. Until then, we'll have to make room for you here. I'll let Director Fury know we're taking on a semi-civilian." He glanced to me. "You wouldn't happen to be combat ready, would you?"

"Oh, only if we're getting medieval." With the silence and confused looks, I sighed. "Hand to hand or melee weaponry. I never really used guns. Well once. To shoot soda cans. I did good." I scuffed my foot sheepishly.

"Better than nothing. You can train with Agent Ward and Skye if you'd like." Coulson nodded to the group and turned to go make his call.

FitzSimmons was already deep into the design I drew, May stayed back, observing me, Skye was chewing on her lip, not sure what to do, and Ward stood with his arms crossed, thinking.

"I take it we don't really, like, play D&D between missions or anything? No Unisystem?" I gave a nervous chuckle.

()

Nope. No roleplaying games. Of course, they didn't need them. They were real heroes. And I was with them. The thought was really starting to penetrate and freak me out a little. What had I gotten myself into? Was I really prepared for something like this?

No. Not at all.

I ran my hand over the punching bag in the bay. A bag didn't dodge. A bag didn't hit back. Well, I mean, it could if your dumb ass hit it too hard and it flew back. Not that it happened to me. Just saying.

"You should wrap your hands if you're going to spar." Ward descended the stairs, sweatpants and a wife beater on, his own hands wrapped. "Need some tape?"

I shook my head, stepping back. "Not sparring. Sorry, I didn't mean to take up the bag." I started to turn. "I think I'm going to just go back to the bunks."

"Sita, wait."

I stopped, taking a deep breath. I was getting scared. I was really alone. None of my friends or family was in this world. "Yeah?"

"You sure you're okay?"

"Five by five." I sniffled. "Just thinking. Wondering what happens if FitzSimmons can't get me home."

He softened, putting a hand on my shoulder. "Take it a step at a time. They're the best. The can do it."

I sucked in a deep breath. "You're right. Okay. I'll take you up on that training."


	3. Diving In

Simmons was indeed a genius. She gave me a sleeping pill that finally allowed me some rest. I had spared with Skye and Ward, showing that I could hold my own in some scenarios. Of course, I was no Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. I was no hero. And it was thoughts like that making me sleep deprived before Simmons' pill.

Waking several hours later, I inhaled the aroma of some seriously good food. Coulson had obtained some clothes for me and I voted for jeans and a sweater. Being up high in the sky meant cooler air. Hugging myself, I made my way out to the others. Ward, Skye and Coulson were seated with boxes of take out in front of them. "Sita!" Skye smiled. "Thought you'd never wake."

"How long was I out?" I sat between Coulson and Ward, taking a peek into the containers.

"About twelve hours," Ward informed me.

"Wow. Guess I was tired." I pushed a container away from me. "Not hungry yet, though."

"Sita, why don't you come up with me to my office? I'd like to have a talk with you." Coulson stood, motioning.

If I was in trouble, he would have done something while we were on the ground. I followed him, sitting in a chair in his office. "What's the plan, agent man?"

"I wanted to see how you're doing. Ward tells me you're good at combat. And with a little more training, you could be even better."

I picked off some fuzz from my sweater. "Yeah. Super."

"What he didn't tell me was how frightened you really are." He sat on the desk in front of me. "It's about getting home, isn't it?"

"That obvious?"

"It's perfectly natural. I wouldn't expect anything less. We all want our home."

"It's strange though. I would have given anything to be here and see the things you all see. Now I'm here and yeah, it's amazing but… I don't belong here forever." My eyes were wet.

He handed me a tissue from his desk. "I promise we will do everything to help you get home. And if we can't, we'll do what we can to make this home not so bad."

()

Since I had slept so long, it was almost bedtime for everyone else. I kept the earbuds in my ears and started to recluse. It's what I did when I didn't know what to do. I didn't want to get into more trouble than I was in.

And that jerk did it again, pulling out an earbud and making me jump. "Crab and rice! Ward!"

"You have the oddest form of swearing that I have ever heard." He chuckled and shook his head. "We're going to be heading to check out a series of strange robberies in northern Washington. If you want, I think you can be cleared for basic recon."

I nodded. "Okay. I can do that."

"Try and get some sleep." He put a hand on my shoulder. "You'll need the rest."

()

I pulled my lightweight jacket on as May drove the SUV up I5 towards Mount Vernon. Skye sat next to me while Ward sat shotgun. It had been quiet. We'd been briefed that we could check out some eye witness accounts. It didn't feel right, though. FitzSimmons were at the last crime scene, letting their seven dwarfs take in anything they could.

May pulled off at an exit, heading into a historic district. The Skagit River wound its way through at a crisp temp below freezing. The town itself was only at maybe sixty degrees. "What am I doing again?" I asked Ward.

"You're going to stay nearby. Check out the scenery. See what you can catch."

"So, I'm a tourist." I sighed. "Got it."

To tell you the truth, I was kinda glad. I was still unsure about my place, but the fact that they were trying to involve me at all was pretty nifty. I zipped up my coat as we parked and headed over towards a bridge over the river. I loved water. Always felt purifying to me.

Ward was within eyesight of me, but his focus was on the person he and Skye were talking to. I let them be, not giving them any reason to worry.

Someone towards the end of the bridge caught my attention. The man had been pacing some, glancing towards the team and then talking on his phone. Unsettled, I slowly made my way towards him, making sure I looked like a simple tourist. I had to hold back a gasp as he shifted and I saw a gun peek from under his coat. The team had been made. And if this guy was on the phone, my guess was that he was waiting for the kill order.

I remember Ward saying to Skye that every agent had a defining moment. I think that's true for people in general. And this was mine.

Without much time to think, I stumbled over to him. "Excuse me, I'm like, so sorry. I'm lost."

The man rolled his eyes and turned his back to me. Bad move.

Crouching slightly, I leapt, tackling the man over the side of the bridge, his head hitting hard against the rail, knocking him out and plunging us both into the water below. A thousand needles seemed to pierce my skin as the ice cold water hit me. Somehow I managed to think enough to grab the phone the man had been talking on before I broke the surface, gasping for air.

"Sita!" Ward bellowed from the bridge. "Sita, are you okay?"

"Yeah!" I choked out, starting to swim for the shore. Every muscle in my body screamed against the cold. My fingers and toes were already numb as my body tried to conserve whatever heat it could to my core. I couldn't see the strange man and really didn't give a crap if he'd made it or not. I had his phone and even water logged, I knew Fitz could get info.

Ward made the shore just as I did and helped pull me to land. Quickly, he yanked off my jacket and reached for the button of my jeans. "Take off your shirt," he ordered. "We need to get you dry and warm, fast."

"You know," I shivered, "there are easier ways to g-g-get me naked-d-d." The stammering wasn't from swooning. I was so cold my teeth were chattering.

Clad in only my bra and underwear, Ward wrapped his coat around me and pulled me tight to him. "May is finding a road down. We'll have heat packs waiting on the bus."

I swallowed. "Ward? I c-c-can't feel my feet-t-t." I curled my hands between us to keep them warm, still clinching the cell phone.

He didn't even question. He simply lifted me into his arms and got me to the SUV.

()

May swung into the ramp of the bus where Simmons was waiting with a stretcher, blankets and hot packs. As Ward laid me on it, I finally unclenched the phone. "G-g-get this to F-f-f-fitz." May snatched it up to do so as Simmons clipped a device to my forehead.

"Her core temp is stable. Heart rate elevated. Extremities should be our priority," she evaluated.

Ward nodded, tucking the heated blanket tighter around me.

Coulson rushed in. "What the hell happened?"

"In the SUV, she was saying something about a shooter. She got a phone to Fitz for trace."

"Sita? Sita, can you feel your feet?" Simmons was down by them.

I began to panic. "No, I can't! I can't feel my feet!"

"You have to calm down. If your heart rate goes too irratic at this temp, you could throw a clot and stroke."

"Jemma, I can't feel my feet!" I struggled to sit up.

Ward held my shoulders down. "Sedate her!"

()

Beep... Beep... Beep... Beep...

Waking from sedation, I found my head foggy and my mouth dry. Trying to swallow, I groaned. "Water," I rasped. A straw made it to my lips and I took in hungry sips. I was warm again, feeling more like myself. "Thanks."

Simmons set the cup aside. "How do you feel?"

"Better." My eyes widened as I remembered what had happened. Quickly, I wiggled my feet, crying out in joy as I felt every nerve.

She smiled. "They were just basically frozen. I apologize for the sedative. We didn't want you to stroke."

"It's okay." I sat up slowly.

"I'd still like to monitor you for a day or so, just to make sure you didn't catch pneumonia."

"At this point? I'm glad to be resting and warm."

()

After a day, Simmons had determined me healthy, all my tests coming back clear. And at the end of that day, I had a knock at my bunk. "It's open," I chimed.

Ward slipped in, shutting the door behind him. "Hey. I heard you got the all clear." He sat on the bed beside me. The mattress gave under his weight and I suddenly realized I was in a nightshirt. Not really fully dressed.

"Yeah. Fit as can be. Back to room temperature. So, you know, no refrigeration required. Spoil date is still a ways out." I grinned.

He furrowed his brow, looking at his hands. "Why did you do that?"

"Huh?"

"The bridge. You're not a trained agent. You don't even belong to this dimension. Why did you risk your life like that?"

I sighed heavily. "Well, in all honesty, it's because it's not about any of that. So I'm not an agent. I'm not a super girl or even from this world. But I did what I did because it was the right thing to do." I took his hand in mine, lacing our fingers. "You'd try to save me. And like you said, I'm not even from here."

"But I'm trained to do so. Why couldn't you have just come to us with the info?" He didn't unlace our hands.

"Because I want to take care of people I care about."

He raised his gaze to my eyes. "You care about me?"

I nodded. "At first it was just a little crush from my world but… I really like you, Grant."

He didn't say another word, simply kissed me straight on, pulling me to straddle his lap. I kissed him back feverishly, whimpering as his hands slid up my bare thighs to my hips, lifting the nightshirt with them. Deftly, I pulled it over my head and tossed it aside, getting back to his lips as soon as I could. Yeah, he'd seen me in my underwear before, but that had been in a life or death situation.

But perhaps this was a life or death situation. We could choose to embrace life and companionship here and now, taking part of the miracle that was life. Or we could choose to let that ember die inside of us.

As his hand unsnapped the back of my bra, I knew what choice we were going to make.


	4. Reaction

As dawn broke, I opened my eyes. Ward was still asleep, cradling me in his arms, holding me close to him. After the night's event, we had collapsed in a heap of spent energy. But he had stayed.

A knock at my door sent me tumbling out of bed and onto the floor with a thud. "Just a minute!" I called out. Ward was already sitting up as I tossed his clothes to him and wiggled into my own. Quickly, I slipped out my door and shut it behind me before anyone could see in.

Simmons blinked, taken aback by my expression. "You seem a bit flushed, Sita. Are you okay?"

"Shiny. Just need water. Why don't you come with me? We can make some breakfast." I spoke loud enough that hopefully Ward could hear me. It wasn't like the walls of the bunks were soundproof. And with that thought, I blushed more. I was a little loud.

"Er, yes. Alright then." She smiled to me and made her way towards the mess hall.

I glanced back at the door. Ward cracked it open, scouted the scene then made it to his bunk undetected by anyone but me.

()

Coulson benched me for the next assignment. Fitz had pulled a name from the phone records that could be a lead and Ward was going in on his own to gather intel. The name had sounded familiar to me and I was racking my brain, cursing that I didn't have my books for reference.

Skye sat across from me as I sketched in my notebook. "You were right, you know."

"I think I need something a bit more specific to go on here."

"About how I feel about Agent Ward."

I froze. "Oh?"

She nodded. "Yeah. And knowing that, I can't believe you did what you did."

I proceeded cautiously. "And what did I do?"

"You got all combat-y and show-off and you have this whole 'other world' thing going on." She waved her hand around in a flustered gesture.

"Skye, seriously. Are you going to go all territorial on me?" I closed my notebook. "Ward is a grown man. If you like him, treat him like one. Don't play games. If he doesn't want you, that's not my issue."

She narrowed her eyes. "I thought we were friends."

"We are. But that doesn't mean that I'm going to start acting like someone I'm not just because you can't fess up to Ward that you wanna bone."

"Is there a problem here?" Coulson intervened, crossing his arms.

Skye immediately backed off. "Just girl talk." She stood. "Think I'll go check on Fitz and Simmons, see how the box project is coming."

After she left, Coulson took her seat with a heavy sigh. "I'm going to have this talk with Ward, too. Just so you know."

I swallowed thickly. Crap. "What talk?"

"I know about last night. I'd gone to talk to him about the next assignment and… well, the rooms aren't soundproof."

Oh snap. This was bad. I turned deep crimson. "Coulson, I…"

"It's why I benched you. I'm sorry but you compromise Ward. If he truly cares about you, it's going to cloud his judgment on missions."

"You're not going to tell us not to do that again?"

"On the contrary, I'm letting you bunk with him so that May can have a bed again. She's been hitting the couch for rest."

I had to take a moment to let this sink in. "So, you're okay with us?"

"'Okay' is a strong word. But I've learned to roll with the punches and make the hard decisions. I also think your influence on him may be something he needs."

"Yeah, cause I'm so, you know, gangster and shizzle."

He grinned. "You're personable. And you have values that are more than a mission statement. What you did on the bridge was an impulsive reaction, showing me who you really are. You could have let them take out the team. You could have gone to the team to try and warn them. But you didn't. You showed that when the chips are down, you're there."

I nodded. "I was raised that way. We do what must be done."

"Where were you raised?"

"In Oregon. I grew up with a group of Cherokee people who taught me a lot about respecting the earth and all its creations." I looked at my notebook, thinking back to that family.

He nodded sympathetically. "We will get you back to them. I'm sure of it."

"Glad you are."

()

That name was still mulling over in my head. Hardy. Felicia Hardy. Why did that name not make me feel at ease?

"Oh suck a duck in a pickup truck." I raced down to the war room where Coulson, Fitz, Simmons and May were. "Get him out of there!"

Coulson blinked. "What is it?"

"I remembered that name. In my world, that name belonged to the Black Cat. If it's her, she has micro-servo tech in her suit. She'll outmatch him physically. If he can't get the drop on her, he's toast."

Coulson focused, touching his earpiece. "Ward? Ward, do you copy? Fall back."

Silence filled the room and my heart stopped beating.

After what seemed like an hour, he responded. "This is Ward, I copy. But I'm almost to the target. Have a visual."

I shook my head at Coulson. Ward was underprepared for this one.

Coulson hesitated. "Obtain tech only. Do not make contact."

"Confirmed. Will meet at point in forty."

My heart sank. "Coulson…"

"He knows what he's doing, Sita. Have faith."

()

Forty minutes was petrifying. I had gone to Ward's bunk with my notebook and music to try ad distract myself from the thought of him being taken out. Eliminated. Or worse, captured and tortured. Coulson had been right. Ward would have been compromised with me there. However, what Coulson failed to mention was how I would be compromised.

I'd left the door open. No use hiding the fact now. If Coulson knew, it was safe to presume some, if not all, of the others had figured it out. Simmons knocked on the doorframe. "Hey there."

I looked up with hopeful eyes. "Hey, any word?"

She shook her head. "No. But he still has twenty before we need to worry." She leaned on the door. "So, you and Agent Ward…"

"Yeah. Me and Agent Ward." I hugged my knees to my chest. "I don't know what we are, but we are."

She flashed a nervous smile. "Well, good on you, then!"

I grinned. "I know, it's weird. A couple of weeks ago we didn't even know each other."

"A couple of weeks ago, you thought your world was the only real one."

"Very true." I rested my chin on my knees. "Do you really think you and Fitz can figure out the box?"

Her smile faltered. "We're trying. We really are."

I inhaled deeply, thinking. "If it did come with me, it may not have landed in the same spot. What if we tracked that energy reading you found from me in the lab? I mean, with like, satellites and stuff?"

"We could try." She pressed her lips together. "Do you really want us to succeed now?"

"That, dear Jemma, is a very good question."

()

He was ten minutes late. And shot. I rushed to his side as soon as May parked the SUV. "Grant? Oh crap, are you okay?"

He grinned. "I'm fine. It's just a little flesh wound." He tossed his pack to Fitz. "Got the tech. Hardy was bit feistier than we thought."

Coulson nodded. "Sita remembered her. That's why we wanted the abort."

I grinned. "I got mad skills on memory."

Ward smiled affectionately to me but then tried to hide it, unaware that the entire plane knew.

Well, almost the entire plane.

()

I sat on our bed and watched as Ward winced, pulling his shirt over his head. He'd taken the hit to his shoulder. And he'd been right, it wasn't too bad. The bleeding had stopped a long time ago. "You want me to clean it?" I asked softly.

"Sure." He popped open a drawer with basic medical supplies and sat beside me. "You done this before?"

"Not on gunshots. I used to be a caregiver, though. Mostly hospice." Gently, I tended to his wound, mulling Simmons' question in my head.

"Why did you stop being a caregiver?"

"Got too attached to people. I tend to care a lot. And watching people die…" I trailed off. He could have died today. This wasn't a TV show anymore. Swallowing, I bandaged him up. "There ya go."

He put away the excess supplies and turned to me. "So, Coulson had a talk with me."

"Yeah, me too."

"Are you sure you want this?" He crossed his arms, letting his expression go into poker face mode.

"Are you?"

"No. But that's why I think we should explore this. Whatever it is. It's new. And it feels right." He uncrossed his arms and sat back on the bed. "That and I'm sure May is glad to have a bunk again."

I smiled and kissed him softly. "Today upset me. But I got through it."

He put his good arm around me. "You're stronger than you think. I noticed that when we trained. You hold back. Not just physically."

I ginned mischievously. "Do you think I held back last night?"

He smiled back. "Yes. But only because I think you didn't want to get caught."

"You may be right about that." I kissed him again. "Tonight let's take it easy though. It was a rough day."

He nodded. "I'm good with that."

I went to sleep fitfully, one sentence repeating in my mind:

_"Do you really want us to succeed now?"_


	5. Fictional Realism

The bed was cool when I woke up in the morning. Ward was a very militant agent. He had morning training and he was always punctual. I stretched and sighed, sitting up and planting my feet on the cool floor. I still didn't have an answer to Simmons' question.

I dressed in workout attire and descended down to the training area where Ward was holding the punching bag for Skye. There was a new fire behind her eyes and I swallowed, wondering if she finally figured it out, or maybe someone told her.

"Hey, can I get in on that?" I smiled as I grabbed some tape for my hands.

Ward nodded. "Actually, you and Skye are pretty well matched in skills. Why don't we try a one-on-one spar?" He drug out heavy mats, arranging them on the floor. "General spar, don't try to kill each other. Just try to knock each other down."

The look she gave me made me glad for his instruction. I took up stance at one end of the mat. She faced off, her eyes burning with anger. Ward stood back, arms crossed, focused on our training with no clue about the fact that this fight was going to become hard core.

Her first punch was full power. I shifted to the right to dodge and swept my leg to the back of her knee, knocking her down.

"Anticipation, Skye. Focus," Ward instructed from the side. "She used your momentum against you."

She popped back up, shrugging off the fall. "Got it."

This time, she was circling, waiting for my strike. I went to grab for her arm, hoping to toss her aside. She dropped down to kick my feet out from under me. I fell back, hitting the mat so hard the wind rushed from my lungs. Without hesitation, she straddled my chest, pulling back her fist and landing a wicked right cross to my face. Pain erupted through my cheek and I tasted blood in my mouth. Ward ripped her back as she curled her fist for another punch.

I sat up, wiping blood from the corner of my mouth. "That all you got?" Me and my big mouth. I really needed to learn how to not just spout back.

"Sita…" Ward warned, holding tight to Skye as she tried to pull away.

I stood. "No, let her go. It's a girl thing. Let her come at me." I cracked my neck, not playing anymore. I was totally going to have a bruise on my face. Ugh.

Coulson stepped in, having been watching from the lab. "Is there a problem here?'

I relaxed myself. "No, sir."

Skye backed off. "No."

Ward looked confused. "We were training."

Coulson glanced back and forth between Skye and I. "I think training is over today. Skye, Sita, my office. Now." He pivoted, not waiting for an answer as he went upstairs.

I unwrapped my hands as I walked. Silent. When we made it to his office, he shut the door. "Both of you, have a seat."

Still no words. We both knew it was best to just listen. We sat.

"Whatever this is, it ends now. I don't know if it's some form of rivalry on who's the better new girl or what. But you both had your run today. It's done. I will not accept anything else. Are we clear on this?"

Skye and I both grumbled our agreement.

"You are both here for a reason. Different reason, true, but there are reasons. And I want to keep you both here. You're both assets. Skye, your computer savvy rivals our highest techs. And Sita, your alternate reality shows us things that can save our lives. So whatever this is, it needs to stop. I'm going to leave you two up here for a little bit to talk. And I mean talk, no punches." He glanced between the two of us until he was sure we were cooperating, and then he exited.

"So we gonna talk?" I began.

"Not much to say. After our little spar session, I kinda feel better." She grinned. "It helped that I actually hit you."

"Yeah, I bet it did." I sighed. "You and I want the same thing. And I'm not talking Grant."

"What do you mean?"

"We want to belong. You've been alone all your life and now you have this semi-family that you're around all the time and I flash in, alone in a world I don't know and I can't figure out my crap for the life of me." I exhaled loudly. "Let's just start over, okay?"

She nodded. "I think I can do that. It makes sense." She unwrapped her hands. "Sorry I punched your face or whatever."

()

Ward gently put an ice pack to my cheek. "You okay?"

I winced. "Yeah. It's all good. Skye and I are totally on the up and up." I giggled.

"What's funny?"

"Skye? Up and up? No?"

He gave a slight grin. "Ah, got it." He checked under the ice pack with a look of concern. "That's going to bruise pretty good."

"It'll be fine. How are they coming with that tech from Hardy?"

"Barton got assigned." He sounded a little disappointed.

"That's weird. Why?"

"Fury is having the team focus on your portal box."

I swallowed. "Oh." I took the ice pack, holding it for myself. "Well, I suppose that's good."

"Fitz has put your energy pattern into SHIELD's database and has satellites linking up." He sat on our bed. "If the box is out there, we'll find it."

"Yeah." I set the pack aside. "I'm gonna hit the showers. I'll meet you in the lab after to check on progress."

He snatched my hand. "Sita, what is it?"

I gave his hand a squeeze. "I just need to think and wash away some of today's ookiness."

He stood and kissed me softly. "Okay, babe." I could see it in his eyes. He was starting to think of what I was pondering. What will it mean when they find the box?

()

"Fiction and science have brought us many versions of portals." I sat on a stool at the table. "We seem them as simple holes or complex chasms of dimensional strings. We never thought of portals as something real, until you had the New Mexico incident, then New York. In my world, these were yet another work of fiction. But since I'm here, I can tell you, I believe."

The entire team stared at me.

"That was quite a bloody bit of poetry, if I do say so," Simmons approved.

Fitz nodded. "But it hasn't gotten us any closer, I'm afraid." As if on cue, a monitor beeped. "Or does it?" He slid over to a console. "We have a hit."

()

We were in the air in minutes. The hit had come from Canada. We'd be flying for a few hours. Ward cornered me and ushered us back to our room, shutting the door. "We need to talk."

"About? Oh, you don't have a wife, do you?" I jested.

"When we find the box, are you going back?"

I swallowed. "Straight to the point. Okay, then." I sat heavily on the bed. "I don't know. What if it's possible for two way travel? I mean, just portal hop or something?"

"That's a new definition of 'long distance relationship.'"

"Or…" I looked up to him. "You could come back to my dimension."

He took a deep breath. "Sita…"

"I know. It's totally out of the norm. But what about these last couple of weeks has been? And hey, bonus, you'd be like, totally ahead of your time in your skills. And you wouldn't have to report to SHIELD and… you'd be leaving this team." I looked down. "You can't come back with me."

"Sita, we don't even know if it still works. It could have been damaged in the landing." He sat next to me. "C'mere." He pulled me close, kissing me. "Let's just enjoy right now." His hand snaked up the back of my shirt.

I grinned. "Yeah?" I nuzzled his neck. "Think you can keep me quiet?" I rubbed his leg.

He smiled. "A good agent is always prepared." He reached behind him and pulled out duct tape.

I snatched it up. "Hmm. I think you brought the right tool, but had the wrong idea." Grinning wickedly, I ripped off a large strip. "Prepare for torture."

()

I pulled the door closed behind me, smiling at the muffled cries of Ward, still tied to the bed. It was late enough he wasn't going to wake anyone anyway and I needed a snack. As I reached for an apple, I felt a shock, images flashing in my mind. "Holy crapballs." I sat down on a chair, watching as my vision fluttered slightly. As the room settled back in, I whispered: "It's a reboot. New data." I tried to focus on what images were new.

"Sita?" Did Coulson sleep in that damn suit?

I waved a hand at him. "Shh!"

He stopped mid-step, listening, thinking I was hearing something on the Bus.

"Damn." I sighed. "It's cool. Sorry about the shushing. Needed to listen to my own head."

He relaxed some. "Anything interesting?"

"Yeah. Evidently I'm still connected to the Normverse."

"Normverse?"

"That's what I'm calling home." I looked at the apple in my hand. "Remember I said you guys are characters there? It seems like when there's a new story, I get a hit. Time must be different though. Show airs weekly there."

"Anything useful?"

I shook my head. "I can't make it out. It's like it's now a part of my memory but I don't remember when it got there. Does that make sense?"

"At this juncture, I'm willing to say, yes." He glanced around. "Agent Ward asleep?"

I could not stop grinning. "Er, kinda."


	6. Sum of the Parts

**Sum of the Parts**

All life consists of is a series of complex movements (movements) that happen to fall back to back. From the beating (beaten) of the heart, the inhalation of air (gotta breathe) into the lungs, it's all systematic. We are raised (but do we ever grow up) to believe that we are special. This is a bold faced lie. (fibber) The only thing that even makes humans different is that they don't accept the fact that they are made up of the same organic crap (fertilizer baby) that everything else is. We think we dominate (gotta control) the food chain when really all we do is postpone (I'll get to it next week) the inevitable.

I looked down at the large piece of helicopter propeller embedded in my belly like a sword. "Grant?"

Ward was trying not to panic as he cradled my head in his lap. "Just keep your eyes open, baby."

_Night before…_

"It's hard to just look at them anymore," I stated as I hugged my parka around me tighter. "You can't really. You can glance at them briefly and maybe admire them before you realize what they are. But you can't really just look at them anymore. Not without thinking about what they hold. About how they tell of fate and destiny." I glanced up at the stars. The night was very clear and cold. Canada's vast northern horizon was expanded before us as FitzSimmons began a sweep of the area.

Coulson nodded. "I agree. It can be a bit overwhelming." He glanced over at me. "Have you had any luck with your new memories?"

I shook my head. "No. Which is totally freaking my gourd right now."

"Agent Coulson?" Simmons piped up. "You have to see this."

He stepped over to her. "Is it the box?"

She shook her head. "No. It's a labyrinth."

Fitz tapped on his handheld screen. "It's pretty large. Approximately two kilometers in diameter."

"But it carries Sita's energy signal?" Coulson asked.

"A part of it." Simmons squinted. "It's really quite fascinating. It's almost as if part of it… is alive."

"Alive?" I repeated.

"A fully self-sustaining power source," Fitz explained.

"We're not talking gamma, are we?" I clarified.

He shook his head. "Signature is different."

Coulson glanced over his shoulder. "Is there an entrance?"

Fitz nodded. "Twenty yards."

()

May and Ward geared up. I wasn't allowed to go into unstable territory. But we had monitors and they wore cameras in their goggles. A small storm cell had moved in, bringing more snow. They went on foot and made it to the location provided by FitzSimmons.

"I don't see anything," Ward radioed. His cam confirmed it was just a snow barren wash in front of him.

"Hang up a bit," Fitz instructed. He tapped up a few items. "Three feet down. Use the 'Melting Pot.'"

Simmons rolled her eyes. "We're not calling it that."

I watched the monitor as Ward set a large disk on the ground and pressed a button. It illuminated and steam rose as it descended, melting the ice with it. "Confirmed entry point. Moving in." He tossed aside the disk and found a handle to a hatch. Twisting, he gave a yank and pulled. A rush of air blew over him and May. "Compression sealed. Could be living inhabitants. Will proceed." He drew his gun, leading in as I held my breath.

May slipped in behind him, turning on a flashlight. The walls were metal with crude drawing all over them of primitive scenes. "Looks old." She leaned in. "It's blood."

My stomach dropped. I wrung my hands together and watched on.

Ward ventured further till he reached a fork. "FitzSimmons, what am I looking at here?"

"Eh, right then. I mean, wait. Hold up." Fitz fooled around more on the screen. "Left."

Ward gave a nod and made his way left. The pictures continued, growing more creepy. Some of them looked like they depicted cannibalism.

"I don't like this," I whispered. "We should pull out until daylight."

Coulson shook his head and watched as Ward continued. "I'm seeing a small light up ahead. You guys reading this?"

"Confirmed," Simmons recorded.

His voice dropped. "There's noise ahead. Switching to silent." He made a hand motion to May as they both took on defensive maneuvers.

I had to remember to breathe.

Ward cut his light, plunging him and May into darkness. I watched the tiny light ahead getting bigger, even bouncing a little. It was a flashlight! They weren't alone down there in the caves of creepy freaking art!

May snatched the hand with the flashlight and flipped the woman down to the ground. A man stepped forward and Ward quickly had him down as well. The woman cried out in surprise. "Wait!" she pleaded. "We have ID!"

Ward trained her gun on her. "Slowly."

Shaking, she pulled out a badge and ID, holding it up.

Fitz clamored to another panel. "Scanning." The screen popped up with the woman's image and the name Krysten Holtz. "She's with a group called the Paranormal Science Investigative Organization. PSIO. They're a research group privately funded."

Coulson radioed. "Stand down."

Ward lowered his gun. "What are you doing here?"

"Investigating this passage. You?"

He hefted the man up, May grabbing Holtz. "Move."

Ward radioed. "We're bringing them in."

()

Holtz was a tiny woman, mid-forties with graying red hair and wide green eyes. As she was locked in one of the interrogation rooms, she looked like a frightened bird. Her companion had been identified as Bryan Dodson, of the same organization. He was a hard cut military man who looked like he must have been her protection.

"PSIO is Mexican founded," Skye relayed as she pounded away on her laptop. "Funded by Julio Ledesma, the multi-billionaire. Looks like they've been working mostly in Ireland until last year when they were tossed here to Canada."

"They've had a year head start on our labyrinth," I noted. "So this means that whatever it is, it's not just about me and Normverse."

"This could be a dimensional train station!" Simmons bubbled. "Maybe that's why Sita's signature is only on one part?"

Coulson took this in. "We need to find out what they know and get them back to their people. Ward, you can follow and see if there's any tech you can obtain."

He nodded. "Can do."

()

I stepped outside for a bit of fresh air. Freezing air. But this time I wasn't dipped in cold river water. Dawn had come and the warm sun hit my face. I was no use in an interrogation and less use with the technology here. I was the story girl. I knew what would happen, I knew what would come, or at least, I had a good idea.

A low rumble caught my attention. I squinted against the light as I looked up to see a black helicopter approach. "Oh suck my leg." Sprinting, I rushed into the bus. "Incoming!"

Coulson rushed to me. "What is it?"

I pointed outside. "Helicopter."

"They're coming for their people," May interjected.

He pulled on his coat. "Let's go say hello. Help Ward escort our guests. Maybe we can have a diplomatic resolution here.

()

I stayed at the ramp with Skye, Fitz and Simmons. Ward, May, Dodson and Holtz were lined up waiting, Coulson out front. The chopper landed, a suited man stepped out. "Well, well. SHIELD. I'm impressed." He had a strong Spanish accent. This was most likely Ledesma.

"Hello. My name is Agent Coulson." He stepped forward.

"Hello Agent Coulson. Now just let my people come back with me and we'll be on our way."

"I was hoping you would help us."

"I will." He stepped closer. "You may leave Canada and not return to this site. That is my help."

"I'm afraid we can't do that."

Ward shifted and I held my breath. This wasn't going to end well.

Ledesma reached into his jacket slowly, pulling out a cigar. "You don't really have a choice." Behind him, two men hopped out with automatic weapons.

"There's always a choice." Coulson let his arms rest at his sides, easier access to his sidearm. "Please help me make this an easy one."

"That, I can do." He lit his cigar and one of the men shot Dodson right between the eyes.

It all happened so fast, the two commando type men rushed May and Ward. Holtz bolted for the chopper. Ledesma smiled at Coulson. "You're going to lose."

"Not an option."

Two more commandos came out, heading for Coulson. His reaction time was sharp. With all the fighting taking place, Ledesma headed back to the chopper.

"We have to help them!" I cried, running back to the lab and grabbing the biggest gun I could. Racing back out to Coulson, I aimed at the chopper and fired. The explosion was so big it threw everyone to the ground.

()

"Just keep your eyes open, baby." Ward caressed my hair. There was commotion all around. I just tried hard to focus on Ward's face.

"Did I hit it?" I grinned.

"Yeah, Sita. You got it." He grinned. "Didn't know you wanted in on weapons training."

I winced as the pain increased. "Hey, if they find the box. Find a way to tell my family…"

"Stop it. You're not going to die. It would take a silver bullet and a wooden stake to do that," he joked.

"Oh honey, I have a fake laugh with your name written all over it." I started to close my eyes.

"Sita! Sita, no!"


	7. Nine Lives

I was barefoot, standing on the snow with nothing else around me. "Why am I here?" I asked the air.

"Is that a philosophical question or do you not understand how babies are made?" Tony Stark asked from behind me.

I turned to him. "Did I die?"

"Not yet." He stepped closer. "First time pulling heroics, huh?"

"Second, actually."

"So you found something to fight for."

"I've always been fighting."

"Then don't you think you deserve a break?"

"Just have to get clear."

()

"CLEAR!" The jolt from the defibrillator raked through my body as I gasped. The pain in my abdomen surged, bringing tears to my eyes.

"We have a sinus rhythm!" Simmons cheered. "She's alive!" She snatched up a needle and injected into an IV that was stuck in my left arm. "I know you hurt. This should kick in soon."

And boy did it. I had to close my eyes for a second. "Holy crap that's some bomb ass shizzle."

Relieved chuckles circled around me. "Thanks for coming back," Ward grinned, taking my hand.

Coulson pushed off the wall nearby. "Let's give her and Agent Ward a moment." He motioned and led the others out.

I squeezed Ward's hand. "How bad is it?"

He had to be pulling out every bit of his training to hide his emotions. "Bad. Simmons worked on you for hours before we got here. You had three surgeries after that. You had to be put on ventilators. This is the first time you've been conscious in three days."

I gasped. "Three days?" I glanced around. "Where are we?"

"A mobile med center. Even though she's not a primary MD, Simmons insisted on being first call on everything for you."

"Was anyone else hurt?"

"Just minor cuts and bruises."

"What about the PSIO people?"

"The guards had suicide pills. Ledesma was killed. And we didn't find Holtz."

I touched my chest. "You had to shock me?"

"This morning your heart stopped." He looked down at our hands. "I think mine did too."

"Grant…"

"No, Sita, I want you to listen." He took a deep breath. "I want you to stay. Portal or no."

()

Three weeks before I could go back to the bus. And even then, I wasn't going to be allowed to do any training in combat. Which was fine by me. I now also possessed a nice big scar that was totally going to ruin bikini season.

Fitz and Simmons rushed to hug me as soon as I walked in. "It's so wonderful to see you without medical tubing," Simmons smiled.

"Feels better, too." I glanced behind them at Skye and May, who were also smiling. Ward was carrying in my bag but I didn't see Coulson. "Hey guys, I'll be right back." I headed upstairs to his office, knocking.

"Come in," he called out.

I slipped in. "Reporting for room and board, sir," I smiled.

He stood, smiling. "It's good to see you up about." Coming over, he gave me a hug. "How are you feeling?"

"Good. Still weak and a little sore. Had a weird dream while I was under."

"Anything we might need to know?"

I shook my head. "Nah. Was more about like, inner growth. Babble." I motioned. "Can I sit?"

"Of course." He sat on the edge of his desk.

I sat. "Grant asked me to stay. Even if we find the portal."

"Is that what you'd like to do?"

"What I'd like to do is live in the tropics with man servants." I gave him a wink. "You can come," I teased.

He chuckled. "Tahiti is a magical place."

I made another mental note. I had to find out what was going on with Coulson's resurrection. "But yeah, what I really would love is to have both worlds at once. Since that can't happen, I think…"

()

We began our flight back to Canada. Coulson was determined to find out what was worth dying for in that labyrinth. I sat in bed with my notebook, trying to see if I could pull anything out of my hat that could help.

Ward came in, freshly showered. He'd been training with Skye most of the morning. "Hey."

I close my notebook. "Hey. Training go good?"

He nodded and sat beside me, giving me a kiss. "She's upping her game." He glanced at my notebook. "I gotta admit, I'm curious about your journal."

I ran my hand over the cover. "It's not like a diary. I don't go all 'Today, Grant totally checked me out in the hall on the way to third period!' or anything."

He chuckled at that, putting his arm around me. "What is it then?"

"It's the place my thoughts go when my brain gets too crowded." I grinned. "Of course, there's like, _tons_ of air up there so I'm not too worried about anything really falling out my ears."

"Promise me you'll stay on the Bus while we're up there."

"I can do that."

He took a deep breath. "This makes two times you've saved my ass. And I'm supposed to be the black ops specialist."

"Dumb luck."

"I don't believe in luck."

"What do you believe in?"

He tucked his hand under my chin and tilted my head up to look into his eyes. "I believe in you."

()

It was an all too familiar scene. I was sitting with Skye, Fitz, Simmons and Coulson at the monitors. But the images were different. I held my stomach as May's cam passed the helicopter wreckage. Most of it was covered in snow but I knew that those lumps were. A part of those lumps had been buried in my body. Coulson put a hand on my shoulder and gave it a reassuring squeeze.

The descent was the same, leading them past the creepy drawings till they finally reached the point they had met Holtz. "Head to the next fork and take a right," Fitz directed.

"Copy that." Ward led the way forward. "Seeing light." But on his cam, this was a different kind of light. It seemed to emenate from the walls, a light purple. "You getting this?"

"This is it." Fitz turned to Coulson. "This is Sita's light."

Coulson glanced at me to see my reaction. I was looking back at him, unsure. "Ward, May, secure the area so FitzSimmons can begin scans."

"Copy."

()

_"This is Sita's light."_

For some reason, the way Fitz had phrased that made me feel uneasy. I curled up with Ward on the couch. Skye, Fitz and Simmons had gone to check out the wall. May was watching the entrance and Coulson had gone up to his office for a while. I was glad for the alone time.

I laced our fingers together and turned on the TV. "What do you want to watch?"

"You." He kissed the top of my head.

"Honey, I'm not going to break."

"I'm just worried that third time will be the charm." He sighed. "This relationship compromises me. And I think it compromises you, too."

I sat back so I could face him better, my eyes narrowing. "What I did had nothing to do with us being together. I gave my all for the team and because it was the right thing to do."

"Emotions are weakness. If anyone captured you… I would give up things I shouldn't just to get you back. And that is a huge problem."

"Grant, you're going to listen to me. Because you don't realize how wrong you are. You're like, on the island of Wrongville and planting a flag as King of the Morons." I inhaled deeply through my nose. "Emotions give us something to fight for. If we don't care, then we give up. But when we care, it gives us focus and cements our conviction. And it's that conviction that makes us succeed."

He stared at me for a few moments.

"Grant?"

With a growl, he yanked me close, crushing his lips to mine. I guess I was good at motivational speeches because that speech motivated all the way down to his crotch. He shifted, laying me back on the couch without breaking the kiss. I wrapped my legs around his waist, moaning to his onslaught of passion. His hand went under my shirt, accidently pressing against my healing wound. I whimpered in pain, hissing in a breath. He pulled back, looking to my eyes with concern. "I'm sorry. I forgot." He took a few breaths, trying to calm. "You just bring something out of me."

I smiled and touched his face. "I like what's in there." I reached down to rub between his legs. "And what's here."

He growled. "You better be careful."

I kissed him. "I'm always careful. Didn't you know?" I pushed him back gently. "You might want to hit the showers. I'm going to take a pain pill. They always knock me out." I smiled wickedly.

()

"Jemma?" I slipped into the lab a couple of hours later, Ward and Coulson close behind. "Find anything good?"

"It's amazing, really. The different types of observed elementary particles arise from the different quantum states of these strings." She pulled up an image over the table. "It reinforces the notion of the theory called bosonic string theory, incorporated only the class of particles known as bosons, although this theory developed into superstring theory, which posits that a connection exists between bosons and the class of particles called fermions."

I looked to Skye. "Is it wrong that I understood that?"

She nodded. "Yeah. Kinda is."

"An intriguing feature of string theory is that it predicts extra dimensions. In classical string theory the number of dimensions is not fixed by any consistency criterion," Fitz continued.

Ward rubbed his brow. "English, Fitz."

"We can extract coding from inside the wall to remake Sita's box and be able to map out dimensions." He turned to Coulson. "A dimensional GPS, if you will." He grinned. "We can get her home."

All eyes turned to me.

I opened my mouth to speak, but nothing came out. After a moment, I simply shut it and walked out.


	8. Don't Call it a Comeback

I prided myself on being that girl that could hold it together in any situation. In Normverse, my friends would call on me in any emergency to help guide the way. I could detach myself from irrational fears and line out steps to any problem's solution.

Until now.

I was sobbing so hard that it was ugly. I had hidden away in the armory, avoiding everyone. I had been secretly wishing that they wouldn't be able to send me back. That way, I wouldn't have to choose. It would have been easier. But the choice was here.

I knew that eventually they would find where I was hiding. But I didn't know who would find me.

May handed me a box of tissues. "Thought you might need these."

I nodded, taking them and blowing my nose. "Thanks."

She sat beside me. "If it wasn't for your family, would you stay here?"

I thought about it. "Probably. I mean, you all are just amazing and to even be near this is awe inspiring."

"What do you think your family would want for you?"

I dabbed at my eyes. With a new tissue, people. Don't be gross. "They'd want me happy."

She nodded. "I believe that, too." She glanced at all the weapons around us. "Sometimes you end up where you need to be. Even it's not what you thought you wanted."

"You didn't want combat."

She nodded. "But I want to help. I don't like standing by and watching my friends almost die."

"Or actually die." I paused. "Hey, do you know what happened to Coulson? After the battle of New York?"

"He was sent on recovery."

"That's the official story. But if I've learned anything, it's that there's always more than one story."

She looked to me, curious. "You think he's lying?"

"I think someone lied to him." I composed myself, blowing my nose again. "I can help here, in this dimension. Maybe someday I'll go back to the Normverse but for now, I think this is my new home."

She grinned. "If you want, I can be your SO."

"I think that would be so cool. Plus, that way Grant would have to separate being my boss and… uh, well _me_ being the boss." I blushed a little.

()

Grant was reading on the couch, his brow creased in thought. I took a moment to stand by and admire. He glanced up, sensing me there. "Hey…" He set his book aside. "There you are."

"Here I am." I sat on the couch beside him. "And here I'm staying."

His eyes brightened. "Yeah?"

I nodded. "Yeah. I still want FitzSimmons to make the box though. If we need it, we'll have it. But I don't see going back any time soon."

He hugged me close, minding my wound. "Thank you."

I hugged him back tightly. "You know, just because we can't be all rough and tumble, doesn't mean we can't be all smoochy and naughty." Standing, I took his hand. "C'mon, Agent. Time to be debriefed."

()

Relieved, both mentally and physically, Ward and I made our way back to the lab. "What's the word, science nerds?" I smiled.

Simmons looked up from her work. "While Fitz is pulling together the design for the box, I thought I'd review some samples from those drawings. Agent May was correct, it is blood. I'm seeing if I can run a DNA search. Of course, that means I have to find a way to isolate each marker. It appears to be the blood of several people."

I grimaced. "So it is human."

"Correct."

"Did we get photos of the drawings?" Ward inquired.

She nodded. "Yes. They're downloaded if you'd like to see."

I made my way over, letting Ward pull up the images since I didn't really know how these computers worked. The drawings popped up, large and in charge. I crossed my arms and sighed, getting back into thinker mode. "They're primitive. But that doesn't imply they're old. So let's assume that something within the last two years resulted in this."

Ward nodded. "Okay. And Ledesma's team was here about a year ago. But it seemed like they were just getting to our section."

I snapped my fingers. "There's more than one entrance."

"Makes sense. That's why we didn't see any of Ledesma's equipment or anything else."

"Let's get May and go check it out!"

He glared at me. "You're on strict R&R, Sita."

I groaned. "Please?"

"You wanna take this up with Coulson?" He crossed his arms.

I grumbled. "Well, you have stupid hair."

Fitz snorted a laugh from behind us. Ward glared at him. "Got something to say, Fitz?"

The scientist shook his head. "No, sir." A smile crept to his eyes, though.

()

I didn't need to take it up with Coulson. I knew the answer. Until I was fully healed, there was no way I was going into an unsecured site. While May flew the Bus closer to another opening that Fitz had found. Taking the SUV on the unstable labyrinth was shot down quickly and it would take too long on foot. Plus, in case Ledesma's camp was still there, we would need the equipment.

Skye and I sat with the drawings, trying to see if we could place them somewhere. She popped some gum, clicking away on her laptop. "If ancient civilizations could tweet, this would be so much easier."

"Just imaging the hashtags." I turned to her. "Hashtag: Man make fire." I thumped my chest.

She chuckled. "But seriously, comparing these to like, the Myans and whatnot, it's coming up blank."

I turned my attention back to the images. "It's got to have some chronological order. Finding the starting point is the hard part."

"I never would have pegged you for the bookworm type."

"I'm not. I'm the logical type. I see things like puzzles. I work on finding the edges first." I pulled out a notepad. "And I'm old school. Have to hard copy." I began to put some ideas down.

"So… can I ask you something?"

"Go for it."

"You really want to stay?"

I looked up. "I do."

She grinned. "Good. You're kinda like my sister now."

I warmed. "We're all a family here." A dysfunctional, secretive family, but still.

Coulson strode in. "Ledesma's camp is still intact. But we don't read any life signs. It could be that the small operation was just the people in the chopper. As soon as May and Ward secure it, we're heading in."

()

There was nothing hotter than seeing Ward in action. His focus, his skill, and his fine ass. I watched on the monitors as he cleared the camp. It had been abandoned. Coulson had been right about the small operation being kept to the chopper.

When Ward came back, I put on my parka. He stopped. "Whoa, what are you doing?"

I blinked. "Uh, putting on a coat?"

"You're not going out."

"You bet your giddy aunt I am." I put my hands on my hips.

"You're on medical leave."

"It's a cleared scene! All I'm doing is looking around!"

"No, you're not."

"You're not my SO!"

"You don't have one!"

May stepped up. "Yes, she does."

His jaw dropped. "No way."

She crossed her arms. "She can come. She may see something that she recognizes."

I stuck my tongue out.

Ward turned to May. "She's still on pain meds. We can record what we see."

"Look," I began, "By your inflection I can tell that you think what you're saying matters, but... No. I'm going. And you can either join me or not."

His eyes narrowed in anger, but he didn't say anything else, just stormed off.


	9. Iron Flower

I slowly walked the floor of the small camp. It was eerily quiet, except for the small sounds being made by Fitz's scanning devices. It felt like a tomb. I couldn't shake the feeling that we weren't alone but FitzSimmons confirmed we were the only ones there.

About ten feet in, I felt the ground shift under my weight. "Guys? Over here."

The little robots zoomed my way. "Secret passage," Fitz confirmed.

I keeled down, pulling at the floor until I found an edge that popped up. "Got it." I lifted the door, lights flickering on as I did so. "Must be tied to the latch." I turned, started to back down a ladder there.

"Whoa!" Ward protested. But he was too late, I descended.

I really wished I hadn't. I felt my heart sink with sorrow. The room was a good two thousand square feet, lined with bunks stacked three high all around the walls and steel exam tables in the middle. There were two locked cabinets and a sink area.

And each bunk contained a black body bag.

There had to be at least fifty bodies. I covered my mouth in horror. Each one was labeled with a number, along with a "Solution" number.

"Sita?" Coulson called down.

"It's clear," I whispered. "Get down here."

Coulson was first, taking in the site around him and putting a hand on my shoulder. "You can go back up," he offered.

I shook my head. "No, I'm okay." I so wasn't. But I pulled it together.

Fitz, Simmons and Ward joined us, all with shocked looks. "Sweet mother," Simmons whispered.

Fitz's eyes dropped to his screen. "One of them has Sita's energy signature."

I whipped around to him, eyes wide. Had one of my friends come and fallen into this horror? "Where." It was a demand, not a question.

He swallowed and pointed.

Coulson grabbed my arm. "Sita…"

I pulled away. "I got this." My feet were heavy and each step was so hard to take. It was a bottom bunk. I kneeled down, grasping the zipper. It was cool, round like a tear. Carefully, slowly, I pulled, allowing the teeth to separate one after the other. The longest unzipping of my life.

Closing my eyes, I pulled open the head of the bag, counted to three and opened my eyes. I let out a sob of relief and sat back on my ass. "It's no one I know," I breathed. Glancing at the tag, I read aloud: "Subject: 301, Solution: 21B."

Coulson took a deep breath. "Experimentation."

I was going to be sick. I leapt up and ran to the sink, heaving. Ward was at my back, holding my hair back. "It's okay," he cooed. "First time around this sort of thing is always rough."

"Take her back to the bus," Coulson instructed. "We can take it from here."

()

I pulled a fleece throw around my shoulders and picked up the TV remote off the couch. Ward sat beside me and handed me a glass. "Ginger ale," he informed me.

I nodded and took a sip, turning on the TV and flipping it to "Princess Bride."

"Haven't seen this in a while," He commented, putting his arm around me.

I nodded again. I didn't feel like talking. I had only seen a few dead bodies in my life. To see fifty of them and know that they were being experimented on, well, that was too much. Why did it look so much easier on TV? I sipped the ginger ale again, trying to think of something to say. But Ward didn't seem to be pushing me. He was good with the silence.

Unzipping that bag had been one of the scariest things I'd ever done. To think that one of the people I loved could have…

I leapt off the couch and ran to the bathroom to retch again. But there was nothing left for evacuation. "Pull it together," I commanded myself. "You're stronger than this." I rinsed my mouth and looked at my reflection in the mirror. My blue eyes looked worn and tired. My full lips, usually pulled into a grin, looked like they were in a permanent frown. "This isn't you," I told the reflection. "You are strong, you are optimistic and you survive. Pull. Your shit. Together."

"Did you just really swear?" Ward grinned from the doorway.

"I try not to. It's just not as classy to me. But trust me, if it goes down, I could make a sailor blush." I splashed some water on my face and patted it dry.

"I'm proud of you, you know."

I grinned. "For what? Puking?"

"Not so much that…" He chuckled. "But you think your behavior wasn't strong. It was. I know how hard that must have been to think that it could have been someone you loved in a body bag. That's kind of why relationships are discouraged at SHIELD."

I slammed my hand down on the counter. "Stop trying to tell me how our relationship is a bad thing!" I turned to him, fuming. "Either you want me or you don't. Stop trying to walk this line."

"I'm not saying…" He trailed off, reviewing his words. "Oh."

"You have as much grasp on romantic relationships as an ameba." I shoved past him to get my coat. This had been the second time he'd downgraded our relationship due to his job. I didn't want to really be around that right now.

I rammed right into Fitz as he was rounding a corner, his cup of hot cocoa dumping all down his front. "Agh!" he cried out, quickly trying to detach the hot wet shirt from his skin.

"Fitz! Oh god, I'm sorry." I rushed to grab a roll of paper towels, pressing them to the chocolate mess. "I'll try and dab out what I can but I can clean this, I swear. I'm so so so sorry." Without really realizing, I followed the hot liquid down, dabbing at his crotch.

He batted at my hands as a blush crept up his cheeks. "Uh, no problem." He snatched the paper towels. "I can get this one."

"Oh! Yeah, uh, right. Sorry about that, too." I grinned.

"You were in a might of a hurry," he observed, taking over the task of trying to clean himself up.

"Just needed fresh air."

"You're not the only one." He motioned behind him. "Simmons is out there. She was working in the tomb but it got to her too."

()

I met up with Simmons at the camp entrance. She had a steaming cup of liquid in her hands which I avoided. No more unnecessary pat downs. "Hey, Jemma." I don't why I always felt like I needed to call her by her first name.

She put on a brave smile. "Hello there, Sita."

"Sometimes I forget that this is your first real time in the field, too."

"Well, not first but, yes, first like this." She looked back towards the entryway. "Some of those people had… well part of them… they… were eaten."

I shuddered but held it together. "Did they all have the same solution number?"

"I hadn't looked at that yet. But that's a good point."

"And did we get into the cabinets?" I headed to the ladder, back in investigative mode.

Coulson seemed surprised when I came down. "Sita."

"Heya, C-dog." I looked to the now open cabinets. "So what have we got?" I stepped closer, looking at the vials arranged neatly with their proper labels attached. They were all various colors and some even had a glow to them.

"We're cataloging and recording right now," he informed me. "I've advised Dir. Fury about the body count. There's going to be a team out here to join us."

I tilted my head, seeing a vial that gave off the same purple glow the light in the labyrinth had. "Solution 315F," I read aloud. "This one had the same glow."

He nodded. "We saw that, too."

I turned to him. "Where are the eaten bodies?"

"Sita, I…"

"Oh I don't want to open the bags, just see the tags." I paused. "And I'm a poet, wouldn't ya know it?" I mimed hitting a drum set. "Ba-dum-chi!"

He gave a pity grin. "This way."

I read each one with a frown. "Huh. Not the same."

"The victims weren't the same, but maybe the diners were."

"If one of these vials contains something that makes these guys all Reaver-like then we need to find out which one and flush that crap."

"Reaver?"

"Sorry, great show that was canceled before it's time."

()

Director Fury and Agent Hill were among the team that arrived. Fury did not look pleased. His eye focused on me. "So this is the little portal jumper." He crossed his arms. "Coulson tells me you're a safe bet but I see you as a liability."

"I see me as an Aries with a proclivity for Italian food." I smiled.

He gave a half chuckle, half snort. "He also tells me that you have a way with words when you need to."

"That one fits, yeah."

"I was impressed with your work in Washington." He glanced at my stomach. "Your work here in Canada needs a little touch up."

"We do what we have to." I was _so_ not going to look weak in front of Fury. He was top dog for a reason.

"Yes, we do." His view moved behind me. "Or _who_ we have to." I didn't have to turn around. I could guess that Ward was there.

"Is there a problem, Director?"

"I don't think that I have to tell you that it's a bad idea."

"You're not alone in that, sir. Now if you can guess my weight, you'll get a T-shirt that says, 'That's really none of your business.'" As soon as the words left my mouth, I regretted them.

His eye narrowed. "A way with words, indeed." He turned slightly. "Coulson!"

Oh crap. Oh crap. Oh crap.

Coulson came over. "Sir?"

"I'm having your plane fitted with an extra bunk for our guest here."

"Actually, I've…" I stopped short. Yeah, tell him you're doing one of his agents every night. "Thank you, I mean."

As he walked away to go talk to Agent Hill, I let out a huge breath. "Oh wow, that was a little intense."

"You did good."

"I told him that my relationship was none of his business."

"I didn't say you did great."


	10. The Wind Up

"What the…" Coulson began to heat with rage.

This was inconceivable. This was worse than treason. We weren't looking at deporting or being taken off of SHIELD. For this type of betrayal, we were looking at death. I had thought it was safe. It was nearly two in the morning and the bus had been closed up while Fury's team worked the site. We were being given a break.

"Phil, I can explain." I scrambled for words.

"Don't you _dare_ call me Phil!" His ears rimmed with red.

I quickly moved off of Ward and opened Lola's driver's side door, tugging my nightshirt down. Ward tucked himself back into his jeans, zipped up and exited the driver's seat. "Sir, we – "

"You had _sex_ in _Lola!"_ Coulson bellowed.

I bit my lip. "We thought you were asleep."

"I was. You honked her horn. I'm guessing _with your ass!_" He was horrified. "No amount of detailing is going to get that image out of my mind." He clinched his fists. "Both of you, back to your bunk. And we _never_ speak of this again."

I winced and plucked my panties out of the car. "Coulson, I'm sorry."

"Just go," he wouldn't look at us.

Sheepishly, we retreated back to our room.

()

The next morning was tense. But the rest of the crew didn't know why. Guilt ridden, I had awoken early and made French toast for everyone. We sat around a table eating breakfast and no one was talking. Coulson didn't even look our way once. I had never felt lower in my life. It had seemed like such a harmless idea in the heat of the moment but Coulson really prized Lola.

Clearing his plate, Coulson stood, deposited the dish in the sink and went to his office without a word.

Skye looked to me. "Okay, what's going on? That was the iciest I have _ever_ seen him be."

I pushed my food away. "Long story." I stood. "Help yourselves to more leftovers." I followed Coulson's path to his office, going in without knocking. "Coulson?"

"Get out."

"I want to apologize."

He finally looked at me. He didn't look angry. No, that would have been easier to deal with. He looked disappointed. Ugh, I hated that. It was so much worse. "You want to apologize? Sita, this isn't like you took a wrong turn on a drive and dented her. You…" He sighed, trying to find the words.

I stepped closer. "I know. Looking back, it was a horrible idea. It was a heat of the moment suggestion that we didn't think through. But I would _never_ hurt you on purpose."

He took a deep breath. "Who's idea was it?"

I winced. "Mine. I had this image in my head of being one of those hot calendar girls. That car should be in a calendar!"

He took a few moments of silence. "It never happens again. Do we have an understanding?"

"Yes!" I rushed to him, throwing my arms around him in a hug. "Please don't be mad at me. I hate that."

He returned my hug. "You are so lucky I like you. I almost shot both of you on site."

()

May watched as I stretched out on the mat, warming up. She advised me that while I was still healing, it would be best to keep my flexibility and make sure my muscles didn't lose any mass. Her suggestion was that we do Tai-Chi.

"It'll help you with your focus, too," she commented.

"I have focus," I muttered.

"You focus only when the situation is at its most dire. We need to pull you so that you carry that focus before it gets that bad."

I looked up at her. "Is this how you got so good? You worked on the focus?"

"I got this good because I had to."

()

We gathered in the lab for a report update from FitzSimmons. Tensions gone, we were all back in teamwork mode. Most of us. I noticed Skye hung back, texting furiously on her cell.

Simmons brought up a presentation on the large screen. "We were able to obtain Dr. Holtz's notes from the camp. They were working on several aspects with this labyrinth. The first was the dimensional GPS we had thought of, the second was the qualities of each dimension, and the third was the possibility of combining them."

"They hadn't been successful on the first task," Fitz noted. "But their notes can help us complete it."

"The second and third task is what those vials contained." She flipped up a list. "So far, there are thirty-seven documented various dimensional distinguished projects."

"One of which is Normverse," I amended.

She nodded. "Yes. And we've also isolated which vial contained the cannibalistic tendencies. We were able to isolate it by…" She swallowed thickly. "Keeping track of the bodies that had traces of human flesh in their digestive track."

Ward braced his hands on his hips as he reviewed the list on the screen. "Can we use the vials to code out the different spots on the labyrinth?"

Fitz beamed. "Yes. We've actually already started."

Something was itching at me. "What about Holtz? There's no way the chick just pulled a disappearing act. She has to be somewhere, maybe with the rest of Ledesma's team." I tilted my head in thought. "How do we even know that was really Ledesma?"

Everyone got quiet.

"We don't," Coulson supplied.

"I think that the top prio should be Ledesma. If it wasn't him, then he may come retaliate. Let's have Skye get on the net, Ward and I will take the camp for any leads. FitzSimmons, you stay on your tasks." I stopped, realizing I had just ordered around my friends. "Uh, I mean, if that's cool or something."

May gave just the tiniest grin of pride. Coulson nodded with a smile. "Good idea. Also, see if anything else may trigger a memory since your last 'reboot.'"

"You got it, C-dog."

"Eh, let's not call me that, either."

()

I got a nifty little name badge to wear on site. It read "Consultant" and I couldn't help but smile. I was officially a consultant of SHIELD. How freaking cool is that? Seriously? Ward stayed by my side but he wasn't chatting it up. He was in top agent mode.

I began humming softly as I walked, looking around bunks that had housed Holtz and the crew. It had been pretty well scoured by Fury's team but that was fine. This was more about jogging my memory. I sat on one of the beds and closed my eyes, inhaling deeply. When I opened my eyes, I looked to my left, touching the pillow there. "I keep my feet on the ground, and I don't go to sleep to dream," I whispered.

"What?" Ward asked.

I looked up at him. "I think Ledesma was a front."

"Go on."

"Why would he have even been here? Why did he care about dimensional irregularities? He was just an eccentric billionaire, from what the file said." I stood. "But Holtz, she's a genius. I mean she's like, Tony Stark genius from what I saw in her notes. What better way to keep your work a secret than to say it's not your work? When she's caught, she plays the scared little lady and we play right along. Did you notice that Ledesma didn't give the order to shoot her? Just the guard?"

"Well, she's the scientist. He needed her."

"But there are probably others that could finish her work. It'd been a year. You don't keep a failing scientist on the payroll." I chewed on my tongue as I thought. "We should destroy the labyrinth."

"Pardon?"

"It's like the Tesseract. It's a dangerous weapon."

()

I laid out all my theories to Fury, Hill and Coulson, concluding with my suggestion to destroy the whole thing. "If anything, we have the samples. We can still work from that."

Fury drummed his fingers on the conference table we sat around. "Destroying the labyrinth would limit our possibilities for defensive technology."

My eyes narrowed. "You mean like Phase Two."

He glared right back. "Careful what you let leak, little lady." He stood. "We'll consider your theories. I think that for now, Coulson, your team can go. You've done good and I think that there are probably other missions you can get working on."

Coulson stood. "Yes, sir." He nodded at me to get up.

I did, begrudgingly. Immediately, I put on a phony smile and stated in my most annoying customer service voice: "Thank you for your consideration. We'll be happy to hear from you soon!"

Coulson grabbed my arm and drug me out before I said anything else stupid.

()

I hit the punching bag hard. "We'll consider your theories," I mocked as I punched again. "Consider this!" I kicked at the bag and winced, pain coming from my side.

"Easy, killer," Ward smiled as he came down to check on me.

I huffed, glaring. "Consider my theories, can you believe that?" I punched again.

He came over and held the bag. "Coming from Fury, it means you're getting more consideration than most."

I began punching again. "Great." I twirled, kicking out my leg and kicking the bag. "Ow!" I grabbed my side and fell back, landing on my ass.

"Sita!" Ward rushed to my side. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," I groaned. "It just pulled." I bit my lip to keep from crying. "Maybe I'm done for today."

He scooped me up in his arms. "I think so, too."

()

Simmons came to my room a little while later, two mugs in her hands. "Thought you might want some tea to help you relax."

I smiled. "Thank you." I motioned. "Have a seat."

She did, handing me a mug. "I saw you in the training area."

"Yeah, needed to work out aggression." I sipped the tea. "What about you? How did your day go?"

"Quite well. We've isolated a lot of the pattern bases from the vials, allowing us to match them to corresponding sections of the labyrinth." She beamed with pride. "And the properties alone, well, minus the cannibalism, it's showing us so many possibilities for amplified qualities in the human genome!"

"You mean, like Captain America?"

"I mean, that some of these properties, they would be Captain America times ten."


	11. Strike Three

We were headed to California. Stark had some tech that could help FitzSimmons and the rest of us were going to be getting a break. May was going to head the little venture since Stark didn't quite know about Coulson still being alive.

"Wait, we get to stay at a hotel?" I was giddy at the idea.

Coulson nodded. "Yeah. They're going to go ahead and do some routine cleanup and get that new bunk installed. So we get some R&R."

I bounced up and down. "Oh my god! Oh my god! I'm so excited!" I stopped. "Wait, I need a bathing suit. There is no _way_ I'm not going in the ocean." I clasped my hands together. "Please, can I have a bathing suit?" I batted my eyes at him.

He chuckled and shook his head in defeat. "Yes. Because the alternative is that you'd probably go nude."

()

It was a sweet hotel. We didn't get the presidential sweet or anything, but it was a king size bed and a private bathroom. I flopped back on the plush mattress, sighing with happiness. "Oh this is wonderful…"

Ward smiled and tossed our bag in a chair. "You mean the thin mattresses in the bunks aren't your favorite?" He flopped next to me. "Oh yeah, that's the stuff right there."

"With this bed, I almost don't need you." I smiled.

"Oh yeah?" He poked my arm. "Is that so?"

"Hey, I said 'almost,' didn't I?" I rolled to lie half on him, hugging him. "I didn't realize how much we needed a break like this."

He drew lazy circles on my back. "I haven't had a vacation in two years."

"No way, really?"

"Yeah. But then again, I didn't really have anywhere I wanted to go. No one to go with."

"You mean to tell me you haven't had a girlfriend in two years? I'm surprised our first time lasted as long as it did, then."

He chuckled. "I've had sex plenty in the last two years. Just no real girl that I wanted to date."

I furrowed my brow. "Define 'plenty' for me."

"Er, uh, I don't know. But hey, I saw that Coulson got you a swimsuit. Wanna go out to the ocean while it's still daylight?"

"Nice save, Captain Diversion." I poked his chest. "We're going to come back to this topic." I stood up. "However, I am looking forward to that swim."

()

I stretched out on the beach towel to dry off, basking in the bright sun. Ward set his book aside, peeking at me from over his sunglasses. "Good swim?"

I nodded. "Best ever. The beaches out here are so warm." Coulson had picked out a simple one piece for me to hide the ugly scar that was forming on my midriff. I knew it was still there though. It was a constant reminder that this really was just a break and soon we'd be back on the trail of Holtz.

"You're thinking again." He broke my train of thought.

I smiled and closed my eyes. "Always am." I fluttered my hand to him. "Did you bring any water?" A cool bottle slipped into my waiting hand. "Thanks."

"Hey, I'm gonna hit the head. You need anything?"

"Nope. Just the sun." I smiled.

He gave me a soft kiss and I heard him get up from his towel to go to the restroom. This is what we could be like. We could be a normal couple hanging out at the beach. Then we could go home, cuddle, watch movies and just be us.

Yeah right.

Someone was blocking my sunlight. I opened my eyes to a hunky dark haired guy. "Sorry, ma'am." He reached down, picking up a Frisbee that had landed by me.

I smiled. "No problem."

He paused, returning my smile. "I hope this isn't too forward but you are beautiful."

I chuckled. "Thank you. It's nice to hear that."

"You don't hear it all the time?" He looked appalled. "This _must_ be corrected." He kneeled and extended his hand. "I'm Eric Williams."

I shook his hand, being polite. "Sita. Nice to meet you."

"Sita? Hmm, does that mean that empty towel next to you is taken by Rama?"

"You know your Hindu stories." I was a little impressed.

"Not many white girls with that name. But, we could save you the betrayal of Rama and you can just go to dinner with me." He flashed a bright smile.

"You forget it wasn't a betrayal but a shadow of doubt. One that I really don't want to give him. I appreciate the compliment but I _am_ seeing someone." And I really wanted him to show up. Something about this guy was really making me uncomfortable.

He gave a slight bow. "As you wish. Until we meet again, fair Sita." He grasped his Frisbee and jogged back to his friends. I watched apprehensively, trying to memorize his friends' faces. Just in case.

Ward came back, flopping beside me. "Much better."

"On my three. Dark hair. Frisbee."

He snapped to attention, glancing over. "Yeah?"

"He came over to flirt with me. But… there was something about him that's bugging me. And we know that in the past, my buggy feelings are never good."

He reached into my beach bag and switched out his sunglasses for another pair. "Camera," he explained, slipping them on and tapping the sides, taking photos of the mysterious man. "We'll upload them back on the bus."

I nodded. "He said his name was Eric Williams."

He took my hand. "This is probably just a bad feeling. We're not out here on a mission. He's just a guy playing Frisbee and flirting with women he shouldn't." Protective boyfriend mode seemed to be kicking in.

I gave his hand a squeeze. "You're probably right." You know, because this was a dimension where the weird didn't happen. Right?

()

The next morning, Ward woke me with a kiss. "Hey, I gotta go get some training in with Skye. If you need me, just call, okay?"

"Yeah, I'm not even getting out of this bed." I smiled. "Have a good training session."

And man, I wasn't kidding. I stayed in the bed until I got hungry. Reaching over, I dialed up room service and hoped that I had a good tab here.

When the knock at the door came, I trotted over in my pajamas and opened the door.

And that was the last I remembered.

()

"Time to wake up, sweetie." A woman's voice penetrated my consciousness, slowly bringing me around. I opened my eyes to see blurry light all around me. "There she is. It'll take a bit for you to focus your vision, doll. That was a powerful agent we gave you."

"Who?" I asked groggily.

"Do you realize you're the first person to portal jump outside of the Walk without serious physical damage?" The voice was sounding familiar.

My eyes focused, confirming what I feared. "Holtz."

She smiled, her wrinkles creasing around her eyes. "Yes. How nice that you remember."

I groaned with my headache that was coming on strong. "Wait, what's the Walk?"

"You know what it is. You were just there."

"The labyrinth," I muttered.

She shrugged. "I'm sure many people have different things to call it." She stood. Now that I could see, I found myself in a cold steel room. I was sitting on a cheap fold out cot and she had been in a folding chair. "How did you manage to port yourself onto SHIELD's plane?"

"I don't know." I rubbed my temple. "But what I do know is that you're going to get your ass kicked."

She laughed. "Honey, I've seen your team's A game and I wasn't that impressed."

"That was a warm up," I retorted.

"And besides, we checked you for any tech or signal device. You're untraceable." She smiled proudly.

"Ledesma really was a front." I was kinda proud that I had guessed right.

"No, he actually did found and fund everything. He thought I was doing work on a project that would allow for weapons manufacturing. But the Walk is _so_ much more."

"Who are you really working for?"

"You shouldn't worry about who I work for." She leaned down close. "You should worry about what he's authorized me to do to you."

()

I wasn't going to waste my time worrying at all. As soon as she walked out, I started to do my stretches, warming up. I prayed that Fitz thought to track my energy pattern. Tech or no, they could use that to pinpoint my location.

And if that didn't work, I had to get out on my own. I went to each wall, tapping, running my hand over to look for seams or weak spots. But there were none. Just the one door. It had a small window and a slot for what I assumed was meal delivery. "Freaking prison," I mumbled. Internal hinges didn't allow me to take the door off. The latch was a turned around deadbolt. And while I knew how to pick locks, the baron room gave no tools.

Or did it?

I picked up the folding chair and sat on the cot, turning it over and around in my hands. Where the legs joined, there were two small pins. Smiling, I held the chair down with my foot and pulled, prying it apart. I picked up the pieces I wanted, bending them.

Holtz should have done more research before constructing a poorly designed make-shift cell. She probably thought I was a weak, frail portal traveler. She was about to find out how wrong she was.

I glanced out the small window. There was one guy sitting nearby reading a paper. I'd have to be quiet. Delicately, I slipped in my make-shift "key" and proceeded to turn it until I felt the soft pull as the deadbolt sliding back. The click was almost inaudible. I looked through the window again. The guard hadn't moved.

I grabbed two of the legs from the folding chair and took a few deep breaths. This was about to go down. This was real.

Holy crap.

One last breath and I kicked the door with all my might. It clanged loudly, startling the guard to scrambled to get up, reaching for a gun at his waist while I brought up one of the legs, smashing it across his face. Blood splattered from his nose and he covered his face as he cried out. I brought my foot up, kicking him right between the legs. He fell down in a fetal position. One more kick to the face and he was knocked out.

I ditched the legs and took the gun from his waist. Crap. I hadn't used anything but a six-shooter before. Well, it looked easy on TV. I pulled back the slide, loading a round and flicked off a little switch that revealed a red dot. "Okay," I breathed. "Looks live to me."

I kept the gun held straight, none of that fakey, keep it held by your face, crap. Swallowing, I moved forward, the cool walls leading to stairs. The more I looked around, the more I realized this was a cellar. There was a door to a walk-in freezer nearby. And though curious, I didn't have the time to look inside.

Hurried footsteps above me made my heart race. They must have heard all the noise. How many bullets were in a magazine? And could I really kill people? Well, I didn't have to kill them. Just get them wounded enough to get out. I made it to the base of the stairs and held my breath as I listened.

"Just tranquilizers! We need her alive." Holtz. She was still here.

Fighting in a trapped cellar was going to be a losing battle. In a split second, I decided to go for it, racing up the stairs. Leveling the gun, I shot at the first legs I could see, taking down one man. The others dove for cover. "She's armed!" one cried out.

"Don't take her out!" Holtz ordered from behind a counter. This was an abandoned restaurant.

I aimed the gun around. Waiting. It was like playing wack-a-mole. But the stakes were a lot higher than a carnival prize. A head popped up and I fired, hitting a shoulder. Racing, I ran for the doors.

Just as the Calvary arrived.

Watching Melinda May in action is truly awe inspiring. In no time, she'd taken out two more. Holtz an another guard had escaped.

I gasped as an arm went around my neck from behind, a blade going to my throat. "Stand down!" a man shouted to May. I held still, feeling the sharp blade against my skin.

May was unarmed. But that didn't mean she was defenseless. She raised her hands. "Let her go and you'll leave with your life." Her eyes dropped some to my hands. I was still holding the gun in my hands.

"Shut up. Just… just go back to your team and leave her. No one has to get hurt." Oh good. I didn't have to get hurt. Didn't mean I wasn't going to.

She took one step forward. "I'll give you to the count of three."

He lifted the knife and cut my arm, pretty deep. I cried out in pain. Yup, never getting out of a jam without getting hurt. "I'll kill her if I have to."

"One."

His breathing quickened. "I mean it!"

"Two."

He held me tighter. I felt the knife start to break flesh at my neck.

"Three."

I gasped as his grip suddenly loosened. Something had sprayed all over my face. Blood. Was I bleeding? No, it wasn't my blood. The man slumped to the ground, dead. May looked to a building across the street. I followed her gaze to see Ward perched on the roof with a sniper rifle.

"I warned him," May shrugged.


	12. Rejuvenations

I was really beginning to hate hospital beds.

My eyes were closed, but I couldn't sleep. It had taken twelve stitches to sew up my arm. The small cut on my neck was nothing and would heal soon. My mother had always told me that even if you couldn't sleep, you should rest your eyes. So that's what I was doing.

Footsteps were approaching. They weren't the soft sneakers of the nurses or doctors, they were sharper, like dress shoes. I opened one eye to find Coulson at the end of my bed.

"I didn't want to wake you," he apologized.

I closed my eye. "I wasn't asleep. Just resting."

His steps moved close. The soft screech of a sliding chair let me know he'd taken a seat beside me. "We'll have you out of here soon." He placed a hand on my arm. "You did good. And I'm proud of you for not taking the kill shot when you didn't need to." He paused. "You _did_ mean to just wound them, right?" he jested.

I smiled. "Yeah. I've never killed anyone and I didn't want to start."

"That's a good thing. Bonus this time, you got to stay conscious the whole time." He sat in silence with me for a while. What was on his mind? And why…

I opened my eyes, realizing something. "Phil, where's Grant?"

"He's on assignment." That answer seemed a little short.

I sat up straighter. "He went after Holtz!"

"We have a lead. He's tracking it with FitzSimmons and Skye. May is posted here with you just in case they make another grab attempt." He leaned on his knees, lacing his fingers together. "You're not to go anywhere alone. You will be under constant watch until Holtz is captured."

I looked away, tears welling up. "Okay."

"Sita, it's only temporary." He stopped his pep talk when the door opened.

A nurse stepped in. "Her discharge papers are ready, Agent Coulson."

()

I paced the ramp. May sorted through a crate, watching me out of the corner of her eye. "You haven't eaten in a while, have you?" she asked.

"I had a sandwich at the hospital." I didn't stop pacing.

"They radioed that they're on their way back, Sita. You can calm down."

"I'm not worried about them. I'm pissed off that Holtz one upped me." I kicked at the floor. "Ledesma was only one of her benefactors. That means more people know about the Walk. And Fury is just sitting on it!"

"He's not sitting on it, he's protecting it. By now, he's got Agent Barton or Romanov on it." She clicked a magazine in a gun, setting it aside.

I felt a little better hearing that. Those two could handle anything Holtz had planned. "Then I guess I'm back to research mode with the rest."

"And you have training still. We'll be adding weapons training. You show good potential in marksmanship." She looked over to me. "Just breathe. Focus. You got this."

()

Ward came back, looking furious. I took this to me Holtz escaped. He threw his pack across the ramp, forcing FitzSimmons to jump back. I pulled my shoulders back and went over to him. "Let's go talk." I nodded towards the open ramp. "Outside."

He hesitated but followed me out to the open air. "What."

I crossed my arms. "For one, don't ever talk to me like 'what.' I am your girlfriend, not a suspect. And two, talk to me." I tried to soften but I could feel the tension seeping off of him.

He took a moment before speaking. "We lost Holtz. Just got another guard who downed another suicide pill." He ran his fingers through his hair. "We _had_ her."

"And we'll get her again." I uncrossed my arms and took a step closer. "We got more clues to what's going on. They said I was the only one who survived a jump outside the Walk. This means something. This means they haven't figured out how to do the jumps without being on site. Since Fury has that under lock, it gives us time."

He was still tense. "True."

"Grant, look at me. I'm alive. We're all alive. Because this team works." I grinned. "And hey, third time was the charm. I was conscious all the way through!"

He glared. "You really think that's funny?"

"Yes, Grant Ward, I do. Because if we just worry, we're not going to get anywhere."

"This is new territory for me, okay? I'm sorry if I'm worrying." I could he was struggling not to bring up the whole "our relationship is not advisable" crap. It was progress.

"It's okay. Step at a time." I smiled. "C'mon. Let's get back to the group."

()

"PSIO has no co-founder on record," Skye informed us. "But there have been deposits to a related account made through a third party. I'm trying to map it back."

I cleaned my glasses, putting them on and studying the drawings from the Walk again. "She said there had been major physical damage to those who tried to jump without the Walk. What if it wasn't just physical, but mental damage?"

Simmons grinned. "We didn't want to tell you that you had mental problems but…"

"And to that, I say 'ha.' Very funny." I turned my attention back to the info. "Holtz's journal talked about one dimension that did use a control panel based on the Walk's signature. But they closed it down when they met up with her." I snorted. "Guess she opened her mouth."

"Stark's tech is getting us closer to assembling the box," Fitz informed us. "We may be able to reach out to them."

"Good," Coulson nodded. "Let's work on making friends."

()

I swung my shoes as I walked on the shore with Ward. The sand felt wonderful under my feet. I'd rolled my jeans up some to keep the bottoms dry. I wasn't shy about the bandage on my arm and wore a tank top in the heat. He was sporting a t-shirt and jeans, his shoes still on, his hands stuffed in his pockets. I wasn't allowed to be alone so when I demanded a walk, he'd come with.

I slowed to stop, gazing out to the ocean. Sunset would be soon. But the disappearing sun didn't bring any fear. I found myself filled with greater purpose. I was given this chance to help bring forces together and fight the good fight. And that was empowering.

"Hey, Sita!"

Ward and I both turned to the voice. Eric jogged up, wearing surfer shorts and a tank top. "Hey, fancy seeing you here again." He smiled and glanced at Ward, extending his hand. "Eric Williams. You must be Sita's boyfriend."

Ward was cautious, but shook hands. "Grant."

He turned his attention back to me. "My friends and I were going to get a bonfire going. You guys wanna join?" He stopped and looked at my arm. "Whoa… you okay?"

Ward put his arm around me and I grinned. "I'm okay. Had a fall." I looked to Ward. "You wanna go to the bonfire?"

"If you do, sure."

I nodded. "Then let's go."

()

It was like a bad surfer movie. I was snuggled against Ward on a large driftwood log. A blazing bonfire roared in front of us. There were several other people around, laughing and drinking. Someone had produced a guitar and songs began to flow. I used to love nights like this.

"Relax," Ward whispered to me. "You're coiled like a snake."

I was watching Eric. There was still something that bugged me about the guy. But he'd been nothing but friendly and didn't even hit on me at all in Ward's presence. I attempted to relax. I was more than safe. Not only was Ward here, but we had our earpieces in and no doubt, Coulson would be listening.

Eric brought over a couple of beers. "You guys want?"

I shook my head. "I don't drink, but thank you."

"We have sodas, too," he offered.

"That works," Ward nodded.

Eric smiled and pulled two from the cooler, handing them to us. "You guys don't relax much, do you?"

I grinned as I took the can, popping it open. "We work a lot."

He sat near us in the sand. "What do you do?"

Effortlessly, I answered. "I work in payroll reductions and layoffs."

He winced. "Ouch."

"Grant is a security consultant for a jewelry chain." I kissed his cheek. "My baby works around diamonds all day."

He smiled to me. "But I get to come home to the real jewel." He pressed his lips to mine.

"You two are so cute, it's sick," Eric chuckled, sipping his beer. "So you guys new here?"

"Just a vacation," Ward advised. "We're only here for another few days."

"That's sad. You two seem interesting."

"What about you?" Ward asked. "What do you do for a living?"

"I own a surf shop and teach surfing." He motioned all around. "This is my main office."

I smiled. "That sounds nice."

"You guys can have a free lesson tomorrow, if you have the time."

I glanced up at Ward. "Well, we'll see."

Ward gave me a squeeze. "If we even need to consider it, we should get back. Get some rest."

Eric grinned. "Sounds good." He fished out a business card and handed it over. "Gimme a call when you're ready."

()

I placed the business card on the scanning table and watched as images arose. Coulson read aloud: "Eric Williams, born in Patterson, New Jersey, owner of Summer Fun Surf. Former college athlete. Some petty crime charges, robbery, B&E, no convictions. Clear record the last four years. Brother to Simon Williams of William Innovations." He glanced to me. "Guy looks fairly clean."

I crossed my arms. "Yeah, he seems normal."

Ward kept his hand on my lower back. "He was just a beach bum. Hanging out. He was even polite."

"Yeah. Go figure." I sighed. "Oh well, it's done." I snatched up the business card. "But if we have nothing to do tomorrow, we should surf." I smiled.

Ward chuckled and kissed my forehead. "I'm gonna go grab a snack." He gave a nod to Coulson and headed upstairs.

Coulson shut down the table. "You continue to impress me."

"How so?"

"Payroll reductions and layoff? Security consultant?" He smiled with pride. "You didn't even hesitate. You're good with cover."

"You calling me a good liar?" I chuckled.

"I'm saying I'm proud that you can adapt. It tells me what you might be capable of in the future. You might be good for undercover."

I brightened. "Like, real missions?"

He nodded. "But not until we capture Holtz, of course. You're still under watch."

"Of course." I smiled. "Thanks, Coulson."


	13. Tidal

"You were serious?" Ward seemed confused.

"Of course! I thought you were, too!" I put my hands on my hips. "I really wanna go surfing."

"Oh, well… I suppose…"

I beamed and patted his arm. "Good boy."

His scowl returned. "I'm not a puppy."

"But I make you bark," I purred, pressing up against him.

He grinned. "Maybe a little."

"Ahem." Fitz cleared his throat. "Not to interrupt at all, but I need into that crate by you."

()

I so didn't know how to surf. And you could tell. The only good thing was that the wetsuit looked slimming. We hadn't even really hit the water yet. Eric was showing Ward and I proper stance with the board on the sand. Turned out, Ward was a natural. Curses.

"Gotta say, Grant, I can't tell this is your first time." Eric was pretty proud. "You can hit the water first."

I stuck my tongue out. "Bros before hoes, huh?"

Both men chuckled at me. "You're close to ready, Sita. Don't worry. I'll get you there." Eric stood behind me, putting his hands on my hips. "Loosen up. You're a little tight."

Don't say it. Don't do it. I had a snarky comment right on the tip of my tongue. "I'm trying."

"The looser you are, the better you can find your position." He held my hips, trying to get me to sway some.

I pointed to Grant. "No comment from the peanut gallery." He only grinned.

Eric moved his hands down my legs. "Bend your knees more. If you lock up, it's harder to ride."

Was this the intro to a porn? Seriously. "Uh, I think I got it." Even through the suit, I could feel the warmth of his hands. I tried to keep my eyes on Ward, reminding myself that my boyfriend was right there and not to be a little flirt with this really hot guy who was touching me.

Eric's hands moved slowly back up to my hips. "Sway, let your body feel the flow."

I swallowed. "Got it. Let's uh, give this a try with water."

He released me. "You got it." He motioned. "Grant, you're up. Let me see you so your thing."

We all picked up our boards, heading closer to the water. "Watch Grant," Eric instructed.

I didn't mind watching him at all. He paddled out, catching the first wave that came along. Eric and I cheered as he successfully navigated. "Wow, he really is good," I admired.

"Think you're-" Eric began before he was hit from behind. Three masked men had appeared, one taking on Eric.

My eye widened. "GRANT!" I screamed, charging the second man, knocking us both into the sand. I punched the guy with a right hook, attempting to knock him out. Beside me, Eric was battling hard, taking on the other two men and coming up bruised and bloody. I kept screaming for Ward, but he had to fight the ocean to get to us as fast as he could. I took a hit to the stomach, my old wound reminding me that it was still there. I grabbed my side and rolled to keep from getting hit again.

Once the guy on me noticed Ward was almost to the shore, he let out a loud whistle. His buddies gathered up Eric and ran, leaving me dazed. Ward kneeled at my side. "Are you okay?"

"They took Eric!" I panicked.

"Coulson, are you picking this up?"

In my earpiece, I heard: "May and I are on our way in the short bus as we speak."

Ward and I ran back to the shop to change back into our regular clothes and hopped into the van when it arrived. "They took Eric," I repeated to Coulson.

"We heard. Did you catch the direction?"

Ward nodded and instructed May.

"This is so bad," I whimpered. "He's just a civilian."

"We'll retrieve him," Coulson assured.

()

We didn't find the trail. But we did get a communication. It was Holtz. And she was willing to give back Eric. They gave us a rendezvous point of the Onyx Club, nine PM. It would be a very public and active place where SHIELD wouldn't want to make a scene. They would allow Coulson and Ward to come. They would turn Eric over with no more harm than the punches that happened on the beach.

In exchange for me.

"I have to do this," I demanded.

"Not a chance," Ward snapped.

"He's innocent in all this. And you guys can trace me, bust me out and take Holtz. This is the perfect opportunity."

"There's no way. You've almost died twice. And the third time, you still got hurt."

"Comes with the territory. We all make our sacrifices."

"We can get him back without you. May and I can extract him."

"You're not leaving me behind. I put him in danger, I'm getting him out."

Coulson slapped the table. "Both of you, stop it."

We both shut up.

He crossed his arms. "You both have a point."

"I think in this situation, Sita could do this," May added.

Coulson nodded. "So do I. Send back a message. We'll be there."

()

The Onyx Club was thriving. I had dressed in a slinky, short black fitting dress and stiletto heals. Ward and May were dressed all in black as well, but more tactical. My instructions had been clear. I was to go out onto the dance floor where I would be met up with Eric and the exchange would be made.

My heart was pounding as I made my way through the crowd, dancing with a few people to kill time. "No sign yet," I told the team. I still had my earpiece in for now. I had no doubt that if they took me, they would be taking the earpiece but until then, I was keeping in close contact.

"Main entrance is clear," May informed us.

"Their message was sent from a mobile location," Skye rang in. "They're within a three block radius. I'm going to try and pinpoint it."

"Rear entrance is clear," Ward confirmed.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Eric. They had redressed him to fit in. He had a black eye but otherwise looked okay. He made his way over to me, looking concerned. "Sita, what the hell is going on?"

"I'm so sorry, Eric. You got caught in the middle of this." I danced with him, trying to keep up the ruse.

He attempted to dance, but you could see that he was nervous and unsure. "They said that you were what they really wanted. They said you lied to me about who you are."

"When we make it out of here, I'll tell you everything I can," I assured him.

"You mean 'if' we get out of here." He looked around. "There are a ton of them around."

"We're not alone either."

"Your boyfriend?"

"And then some." I glanced to the entrance, nervous. "Did they tell you what we're supposed to do next?"

"We get a drink." He dug in his pocket. "They gave me cash."

I followed him to the bar. He ordered two white wine spritzers and handed over the money. "They told me what to order," he explained.

I nodded and glanced around the club. "Where are they?"

"No idea. They said to wait here." Our drinks came and he slid one to me. "Might as well enjoy the free drink." He brought his drink to his lips and sipped some, his eyes darting around nervously.

I downed mine. "Maybe it'll take the edge off."

He nodded. "That was my thought."

"Sita, you shouldn't be drinking on the job," Warned reprimanded in my ear.

"Stuff it," I muttered.

"Pardon?" Eric asked.

"Oh, nothing. Don't worry." I set the empty glass down. "No…" There was a residue left in the bottom. I'd been drugged. "Ward, move now. I…" I closed my eyes, trying to regain balance.

"Sita?" Eric put his arm around my waist. "Sita, are you okay?"

"I'm on my way," Ward assured me in my ear just before the room went fuzzy and dark.

()

"Sita? Shit, are you okay?" Eric's voice crept into my head as I started to come out of it.

"Swell," I groaned, blinking out the fuzziness from my eyes. "Where are we?"

"No idea. They covered my head when they took me." He was tied into a steel chair seated across from me. I was tied to one similar.

I tugged at my bonds. "Ward? Can you hear me?" I shook my head a little, no earpiece.

"They did a full search on us when we got here." He looked around. "You wanna tell me what's going on?"

I sighed. "They're looking for dimensional travel info. I'm not from here."

"Whoa, what?"

I gave him a cliff notes version of Normverse verses here. "So my team has made a portal box for me to get home and these people want it or me to do something like that."

"So they can really get you home?"

"Yeah, it's like GPS."

His whole demeanor changed. He relaxed, his mouth forming a slow smile. "Thank you, Sita. You've been most helpful." He gave a tug at his bonds. They gave and he stood.

I shook my head. "Eric?"

"Yes? Oh, you haven't figured it out." He kneeled in front of me. "I'm the other PSIO benefactor."


	14. Mirrors

My heart sank at Eric's reveal. I looked up at him with hurt eyes. "Why? Why are you doing this?"

He stood. "The key to the future of mankind depends on dimensional travel. It'll open the door to creating cures for disease, new breeds of mankind, superior force and who knows what else." He sat in his chair again, crossing his legs. "We've been working on improving humans for many decades now. It started with gamma radiation and Tesseract fuels. But our original lead scientist thought he was above our higher purpose."

I gasped. "You're in HYDRA."

He shrugged. "Technically. But it's so much more than that now. And _you_ are going to lead us there."

"You know where I'll lead you? Straight to hell, you bastard." I struggled against my binds.

He laughed. "Now you don't like me? You were sure sweet on me during our little lesson. Then you rushed to save me. I'd say someone has a crush." He scooted the chair closer to me. "Did you wear that little dress for me?" His hand caressed my leg. "Showing all this skin."

I cringed. "I was undercover."

He laughed. "For SHIELD?" He didn't take his hand off my leg. "You're a tool for them, too. They just don't tell you to your face."

My voice was like ice. "Don't. Touch. Me."

He leaned in close to my ear. "Sweet Sita, we're going to be doing a lot more than touch you."

()

Tears were streaming down my face. I had been fooled again. I really didn't belong as a SHIELD agent. This was showing that all I did was cause trouble.

Holtz was my next visitor. She tilted her head as she saw my face. "Tears? That's actually unexpected, given you psychological profile."

I looked away, defeated. "Sorry to disappoint."

She set a bag down in front of my, opening it and taking out several vials and a tourniquet. "I need some blood for review. If you struggle, it'll only be worse pain."

"Take what you want," I whispered.

She secured the tourniquet to my arm. "You're really helping the greater good here, Sita. You'll see."

I didn't believe her. And my optimistic mood was quickly sinking. "Eric knew who I was the whole time."

She nodded. "When you left Canada, he decided to take a different approach to obtaining you. He thought he might be able to seduce you. We hadn't anticipated a romantic interest, though." She stuck me with the needle. I didn't flinch. "Williams tells me that you were starting to stray. Gotta say I'm disappointed." She began drawing her samples.

"I wasn't straying. That's Eric's ego."

She slipped out the needle and undid the tourniquet, pressing cotton to the tiny hole to stop any bleeding. "So you're saying you're in love with a SHIELD agent?"

"I'm saying I don't stray. I'm loyal."

She grinned. "You're avoiding my question. But that tells me enough." She labeled the vials and set them in her bag. "If we untie you, do you promise to behave?"

"Nope."

She shook her head. "Silly girl. We're certain we weren't followed and we destroyed your tech."

"I'm hearing a broken record." For the first time since she entered the room, I smiled. "You still have no idea what my team really is." I leaned as close to her as I could, dropping my voice. "Maybe this time the bullet will be in _your_ brainpan, Doctor." I sneered the last word, locking eyes with her.

I caught her flinching. She was scared. "We'll bring you water and food soon." Quickly, she rushed out the door.

I grinned. Maybe I wasn't out of the game yet.

()

They untied me and removed the folding chairs from the room, leaving me with a cot and some food. No knives or forks, of course, just a dull spoon. Today's first meal was cereal. I could deal with that. After I was finished, I knocked on the door. "Done."

"Step back," was the order from the other side. I did as asked and a guard came in, looking at the tray and making sure all items were accounted for. They weren't giving me any leeway this time. He didn't say another word, just took the tray and left, closing and locking the door.

Even with what I told Eric, they were still testing my blood. There had to be something that I was still able to do that they knew and I didn't. I was starting to wish we'd worked on that properties of that purple glowing vial first.

Standing in the middle of the room, I closed my eyes and focused. Maybe there was some dormant power that I possessed. I was in the realm of heroes, after all. I brought my hands up, opening my eyes and wiggling my fingers. "No? Nothing?" I sighed and dropped my hands.

A huge explosion shook the walls. I gasped and felt excitement rush me. They were here! And within five minutes, Ward opened my cell. "Sita," he spoke with relief, rushing to me and hugging me close.

I hugged him back. "I'm okay. They didn't hurt me."

"We're securing everyone. FitzSimmons developed a mass effecting paralyzer. They're all still alive but they're captured. Your idea worked. We traced you here. You and Eric are safe."

My eyes widened. "Grant, Eric is a plant!"

He touched his ear. "Coulson! Williams is _red_."

I ran out the door, finding myself lost. I had no idea where I was. Ward ran up beside me. "This way." He took my hand, leading me down a hall. It was like an abandoned clinic of sorts.

"Did they get him?"

"Yes. We still need to get you out of here." He glanced at me. "Forgot you don't have your earpiece in."

I glanced over to one of the rooms. "Let's sweep really quick. They took samples from me. They might still be here."

He nodded and we checked each room as we went. "No blood samples." He turned to me. "Holtz must have more rooms here."

"Let's sweep."

He shook his head. "No, you need to get back to Simmons for an all clear. That was an order from May."

I sighed. "I'm fine."

"It wasn't a question." He put his hand on the small of my back, guiding me out.

"Grant, I'm really…"

He gave me a look that shut me up. He was dead serious right now.

()

I watched on a monitor as Coulson and Ward entered the interrogation room where Eric was sitting. I had checked out fine with Simmons, showered and changed, feeling more like myself. The prisoner looked calm and composed, his eyes closed softly.

Ward braced his hands on his hips as Coulson took a seat in front of the guy with a folder. "Good evening, Mr. Williams."

Eric opened his eyes and grinned. "Hello."

Coulson folded his hands on top of the folder. "I'd like to conduct this in a civilized manner. We know about your interest in the Walk. And we want to know your intentions with Sita."

He quirked an eyebrow. "You want to be civilized? That's rich. And my intentions with Sita? Purely carnal." He winked at Ward. "You should have seen her in the cell."

Ward was clenching his jaw but he stayed still.

Coulson tapped the folder. "The dimension that had communicated with you, that had a device to port, what did you do to make them not want to talk anymore?"

"My cooking. I burned it." He looked to Ward. "You know, as soon as we were alone, that little black dress came right off."

I narrowed my eyes. This ass knew exactly what to say to piss off Ward. And I just hoped he could hold it together.

Coulson made another attempt to turn the conversation around. "You're headed for a cell, Williams. The type of cell that they don't have keys to."

He wasn't answering Coulson. He kept his eyes on Ward. "She felt so bad for allowing them to take me. She had to show me how sorry she was." His smile was wicked. "With every inch of her body."

That was the tipping point. Ward's fist flew, catching Eric in the jaw, knocking his head back. But Eric just took it, chuckling. Coulson grabbed Ward's arm. "Agent Ward, come with me."

I met them in the hallway. "Grant…"

Coulson held a hand up to silence me. "Agent Ward, you have been compromised for this interrogation. I need you to go." He looked at me. "You too."

I looked a little hurt. "I didn't…"

"Sita, just go. I've got this." Coulson pivoted and went back into the interrogation room.

Ward glanced to me, and then made his way to the upstairs bar. I followed on his heels. The fear in my heart was that he was going to try and drown his sorrows and do something stupid. He poured one drink for himself and sat heavily on the couch.

I leaned back against the bar. "You wanna talk?"

He stared at his drink. "Did you really sleep with him?"

Inside, I was fuming that he was even giving that notion any thought. "What do you think?"

He kept his eyes on his drink. "I don't know."

I gasped. "You think I did!" I marched over and smacked him upside the back of his head.

"Ow!" He finally looked up at me.

I was angrier than I had ever been. "You doubt my loyalty to you." I was tearing up, my breath coming in heaves. "After all we've been through; you think that I would betray you."

"No, I don't, it's just that he was so sure," he pleaded.

"He seemed more sure than you." I shook my head. "You never trusted me. You never believed we were supposed to be together."

He stood, setting the drink aside. "Sita, that's not true." He took my hand.

I pulled away violently. "Oh? Then how come I'm the only one who's ever stayed strong for us and pushed for us to be together? You should have just let them have me!" I picked up his drink and threw it in his face. "I'm staying in my new bunk. I'll get my stuff in the morning."

"Sita…"

I wasn't listening. I just stormed to the new bunk made for me and slammed the door, falling on my bed crying.


	15. Hush-Hush

Physical pain was much easier to handle. I had locked the door to my room and cried the entire night. Ward had made and attempt to talk to me but I just didn't reply. What could I say? This truly was the tale of Sita and Rama. I hadn't cheated on him but the glimmer of doubt sparked betrayal in his mind.

Simmons had attempted to coax me out of bed the next morning but I was so mentally and physically exhausted, I just told her to go. I didn't know where I belonged anymore. I thought I could have a life here with SHIELD and Ward, but I was proving to be ineffective with both. The box was pretty much complete which meant I could go back to the Normverse.

Around noon, I came out of my bunk. Mostly because I had to use the bathroom. I dressed in sweatpants and a baggy sweatshirt, my hair tossed lazily in a ponytail. As I exited the bathroom, I found Coulson waiting for me. I looked to him with worn eyes. "Yes?"

"How are you doing?" he asked sincerely.

"I feel like a reheated piece of cow dung. Thanks for asking." I turned to head back to my bunk.

"Wait."

I stopped. Coulson had always been there for me and trusted me. There was no need to give him the cold shoulder. "Yeah?"

He waited until I was facing him again. ""You are a good person, Sita. I've known that since you leapt off that bridge in Washington. And that truth has only become stronger as time has passed. I value your knowledge, you reasoning and your smile." He put his hands in his pockets. "I know you and Agent Ward have had a falling out. I knew it was always a possibility, albeit one that I hoped wouldn't happen. But what I didn't see coming was how hard you would fall."

I swallowed. "It wasn't like he told me he wasn't interested. He basically thought I wasn't loyal."

"He's more complex than that, Sita. He knows how you're loyal. But he's been burned a lot more than I think you know. I'm not saying romantically but in general with people close to him."

"Phil..."

"I'm not asking you to take him back. I'm asking you to not take it so hard on yourself. This isn't on you. You are still a valuable member of my team."

"Yeah, someone has to be the injured and captured one." I rolled my eyes.

"That just happens to be the luck of the draw. In time, once we've figured out the Walk and disabled anyone else's change of jumping, then you won't be a hot target."

I took a moment to consider this. "Let me have today. Let me be with my thoughts. He's not the only one with a bad past when it comes to those closest to us."

He nodded. "I can give you today. But then I have to ask you to make a choice whether you still want to be on this team."

()

Simmons made her second attempt to reach me a little after my talk with Coulson. This time I let her in. She had a plate with a sandwich and chips on it and a can of soda.. "You need to eat," she explained, setting the food down beside me.

I nodded. "Okay."

The look of concern deepened on her brow. "I'm so sorry you're hurting.""

I gave her a soft smile. "Thank you for saying that." I picked up a chip and crunched. "How's Grant?"

She shrugged. "Hard to tell. He's simply gone back to being Agent Ward. He's in training with Skye as we speak."

I suddenly didn't want to eat. "Oh. Guess he's doing okay then."

She sat on the other side of me. "Or he's being a dumb boy and hiding it all."

"That would be nice," I grinned.

She chuckled. "So, what does this mean?"

"It means I asked Coulson to give me a day to collect myself. After that, I need to choose whether I have anything else to stay here for."

"If it means anything, I hope you stay." She took my hand. "You're my best gal pal." She gave my hand a squeeze.

I sniffled. "You're mine, too, Jemma." I gave her a big hug. "And if I do stay, it will be for things like this. Friendship. Fighting the good fight."

"Then you're staying. Because you have a lot of friendship on this plane."

()

I didn't take the whole day off. Talking with Simmons had made me feel better. And Coulson's words gave me hope that maybe it was just a fight with Ward and not the end of us. I changed from sweats to jeans but kept the baggy sweatshirt on, heading to the war room where Coulson and May looked up at me. He gave a smile. "Glad you could join us."

I grinned. "Fight the good fight." I glanced down at the information below. "Besides, you know I'm too cute to be hidden for long."

"Of course," he chuckled. "We found out that Williamson Innovations is on the verge of bankruptcy due to its direct competitor."

"Stark Industries," I finished. "So Eric's brother was losing it all to Tony Stark."

"We're pretty sure Simon reached out to him for connections and that's how HYDRA became involved." He flipped up a few more items. "The genetic testing they did had some success. Holtz also disclosed where your blood samples were so we could destroy them before they were used."

I nodded. "Thank you." I looked behind him. "Where is Holtz now? I'd like to speak to her."

May pursed her lips. "Holding room B until we get back to Fury."

()

I sat across from Holtz in a chair, much like she had done when she held me captive. But I didn't have a cocky or superior look on my face. I crossed my legs and pressed my lips together.

"I already told them everything they wanted," she grumbled, looking worn out.

"I know. But now it's time to tell me what I want."

She rolled her eyes. "And what's that?"

"When you heard the screams of people being eaten, did you feel anything?"

She looked at me in shock. "Of course."

"When you saw what the 'solutions' had done, why didn't you stop?"

"You have to break a few eggs to make an omelet." But she didn't look to my eyes.

"And when you saw the tears on my face, did you care at all?"

"At that moment? No. But later after I got your test results, I was a little sad for you."

I straightened. "What test results?"

She finally looked to my face. "They didn't tell you?" She scoffed. "And you think we're the bad guys. Let me tell you something, missy, we may be bold and blunt, but we don't hide what we're doing."

()

I knew Coulson had been listening to us so when I walked back up to him, I just crossed my arms. "Spill."

"I have no idea what she's talking about. And we destroyed her samples from you."

I chewed on my tongue. Coulson was the one person I trusted. "Okay. I know if you had something, you'd tell me."

He nodded, not flinching at all. He was telling the truth. "You know I would."

()

If you postpone the inevitable, you only ramp up your nerves. So I went to locate Ward while we were in flight. He was sitting with Fitz, poker chips on the table. I pulled up a chair. "What's the buy in?"

Fitz looked nervously from Ward to me and back again. "Uh, a hundred."

I looked to Ward. "Spot me? I haven't gotten my first paycheck."

He nodded, poker face still on and set me up with chips. "Ante is five."

I tossed in my chip. "I can live with that."

Fitz delt out the hand. "Call."

I looked at my cards. Three of clubs and five of clubs. "Raise ten." I looked to Ward.

He was studying my face. "Call."

Fitz shook his head. "I'm out." He threw down the flop. Two of clubs, six of spades and six of clubs.

I held tight. "Check."

We sat silent for a solid minute. "Ten." He threw in chips.

I matched. "Call." I grinned. This was more than a poker game. This was seeing if something was still here. The connection.

Fitz dropped down the next card. Four of clubs. I didn't move a muscle. "Check."

Ward inhaled. "You could have the flush. But even if you do, I could have a full house. You'd lose."

"Then make your call."

Fitz whimpered a little at the tension.

"Check."

I grinned as Fitz turned over the last card. Six of hearts. He could have four of a kind. Still not enough to beat out a straight flush. "Twenty." I tossed in.

"What is this, Sita?" He stared long and hard at me. "What's the real game you're playing here?"

"Poker. Make your move."

His eyes narrowed with concentration. I glanced up to find that the entire team was now around watching. "Raise ten."

"I'm all in." It was more than a statement about the game. I really was all in with this team.

"Call." He laid out his cards. "Four of a kind."

I smiled. "You got me." I laid my cards face down.

He furrowed his brow. "Show your cards." He reached forward.

I clasped my hand over them. "You've got me, Grant. Just give in." I wasn't talking about the cards anymore. I really did want to be with him. I wanted to show him that the world was not a cold place full of people who simply want to one up you.

I heard a sniffle behind me. This must have been like a soap opera for them.

Ward put his hand over mine, his face softening. "Thank you."

"So who won?!" Fitz yelped.

I smiled. "We both did."

()

Eric was poking at his MRE meal we provided for him when I entered. "Ah, the cuisine of Chef Boy-Are-You-Lazy."

He smiled. "Sweet Sita. What brings you here?"

"Checking on you." I sat down across from him. "How are the accommodations?"

"Top rate. I should have had this kind of setup for you." He pushed his food aside. "You look well."

"Five by five. You look condescending and pedantic."

"Well, look at thesaurus girl." He leaned back, lacing his hands behind his head.

"I prefer to be called 'her majesty.' If it's all the same."

"You're far from a queen. You're a tool. A slippery one, I'll give you that. You've got more tricks up your sleeve than what I first thought. Simon always told me not to trust a pretty face."

"Is Simon behind this? Or does he even know?"

His eyes shadowed. "Simon is dead, Miss Sita. Thanks to Stark Industries, when Simon's company plummeted, he couldn't take it. He hung himself."

I was taken aback. "I'm truly sorry to hear that. But it doesn't give you license to do what you're doing. Experimenting on innocent people."

"How is that different from what SHIELD is doing to you?"

"They're trying to get me home."

"That may be what Agent Coulson wants to do but he's not in charge of everything now, is he?"


	16. Paper Trail

We would be landing soon. I belted in to the couch, my notebook in front of me and Ward across from me with a plate of fried chicken, mashed potatoes and corn, all smothered in country gravy. I had felt like cooking. It was something I could control. But when it was all cooked, I wasn't hungry. I was still stewing over Eric's comments.

Ward moaned. "Oh my god, Sita. This chicken…"

I grinned. "Need a moment alone with that?"

"Why did you never cook for us before?" He shoveled another mouthful in.

I shrugged. "No one ever asked."

"I'm making everyone try this and you're going to be the only one making our food from now on." He smiled. We weren't back one hundred percent, but we were going to get there. I had told him that for now, I still wanted us to stay in separate rooms. My heart was still healing. Rebuilding was always hard.

I cried out, gripping my head as images flooded me. This time, it wasn't just in my brain. The whole plane seemed to shift, like it was ripples in water. I saw glimmers of people walking around, and then they were gone. "Scorch" flashed through my mind. I focused, watching Skye smooch a suspect. Centipede. The betrayal, the lies…

And Skye's disclosure to Coulson about searching for her parents.

"Sita? Jesus, Simmons what's going on with her?" Ward's voice was sharp and authoritative.

"Her vitals are all normal," Simmons replied. "Look, she's coming through."

I opened my eyes. I was on the floor near the table where I had been sitting. Ward, Simmons and Skye were around me. And Skye was wearing that shiny bracelet. This world had a reboot. But what did that mean with me here?

I groaned. "I'm okay." I started to sit up, then found my head swimming. I smashed my eyes shut. "Dizzy." Ward carefully lifted me into his arms and made his way to my room, setting me down.

Simmons ushered past him, holding a tissue to my nose. "You're bleeding," she explained.

I took the tissue from her, holding it myself. "Thanks."

"Ward said you seemed to have some sort of episode. When I came by, he'd lain you back on the floor to keep you from flailing into the tabletop."

"Episode is right. I got another reboot from the Normverse." I closed my eyes. "This one hurt, though. This world shifted some to match."

"How are you feeling now?"

"Well, the room stopped spinning and it was a good thing I didn't eat or we'd be having a major cleanup out there."

She smiled. "You still have your sense of humor. That's a good sign. I'm going to let Coulson know how you're doing." She gave my arm a pat and slipped out, allowing Ward to come in.

"Hey," he greeted, kneeling down. "You gave me a little scare."

"I took you away from your chicken. That's the bigger travesty."

"Oh, I completely finished my food before checking on you," he teased.

()

The Walk looked completely different with a SHIELD HQ built up around it. The project was in full swing, it seemed. Agent Hill met us as we landed with a few agents to take Eric and Holtz into their custody.

As he walked by me, Eric stopped. "You know, Sita. It would have been much easier if you had just left your little Agent Orange there for me."

I rolled my eyes and didn't say a word.

Hill nodded to us. "Everything good?"

"Yes, ma'am," I answered. "Nothing we couldn't handle."

Hill glanced over my shoulder as Ward came out to join us. "Agent Ward," she acknowledged.

"Agent Hill."

I glanced between the two and started giggling. "She drew a little poop on your file."

()

I slipped into the SUV's backseat, startling Skye. "Hey." She closed her laptop.

"Do you still have access to things like hospital patient files?"

"Yes," she replied slowly, unsure.

"I want you to access my files from when I almost died. They had to have run a blood panel, CBC, or even chem seven. And I need to know the results."

"Sita, how do you know all this crap? I mean, not like the stuff from us in your dimension, but you know medical stuff, fighting, law enforcement stuff..."

I grinned. "I have a steel trap. I'm filled with useless facts. Every now and then, they match up to something I need." I shrugged. "Comes in handy. It lets me think outside the box. That's how I got most of my jobs back in my world. They liked my train of thought."

She reopened her laptop, clicking on the keys. "Sita Doe..." She looked at me. "Do you have a last name?"

"Do you?"

She looked back to her screen. "Yeah, there's blood work in here. I have no idea how to read this though." She turned it towards me. "Here."

I skimmed through. "My hCG…" I whispered in shock.

"What does that mean?"

I swallowed. "It means I have to talk to Coulson."

()

I slammed the door to his office, making him jump. "You _lied_ to me!" I snapped.

Coulson stood from his desk. "What are you talking about?"

"I had a miscarriage!" I was on the brink of tears. "How could you keep that from me?"

He froze. "You what?" His look of shock was not faked.

"You didn't know?" I sat down heavily in a chair. "Holtz new because she's looked at my blood. Trace amounts were still readable," I deduced.

He was still coming to terms with what I had told him. "You were pregnant?"

"Lost it with the helicopter blade, I'm guessing." I exhaled audibly. "None of you knew because no one thought to look at the blood tests for that. Jemma was probably looking for clotting or infection factors."

He kneeled down in front of me. "Are you okay?"

I nodded numbly. "Don't tell Grant. Please. I only found out because I did some digging after talking to Holtz. He doesn't need to know. There's nothing he can do about it."

"He'd want to be there for you."

"I know. But I don't need him for that right now. You know, and if I need to talk..."

"I'll be here."

I closed my eyes and shook my head. "This just means I need to be more careful. I didn't even think about that happening. I'm from a different dimension. I didn't even know if I..." My eyes widened. "_That's_ what she was checking!"

Coulson stood. "What?"

"If they can't mix dimensional qualities through injection, why not try cross breading?" I thought back to the notes from Holtz. "The other dimension that gave up contact. I bet that was why. The experimentation went from one idea to something they didn't want to do."

()

I made my way to the fancier holding cells in Fury's mobile command unit, making sure my consultant badge was visible. Coulson hadn't been too keen on the idea of me visiting Holtz a second time, but I assured him I could handle it.

She seemed surprised to see me as the guard locked the door behind me. "Hey there, Holtz." I took a seat.

"What are _you_ doing here?"

"I came with some more questions on your experiments."

She scoffed. "You? Thought they'd send that Terminator guy. Your boyfriend."

Ha! I'd have to call him that later to see how it fit. "No, I'm the one with the question so I'll be the one to ask it." I took a deep breath. "Were you planning on experimenting on cross-dimensional offspring?"

She grinned. "They finally told you?"

I shook my head. "They didn't know. I found out on my own."

She sighed. "Look, it wasn't like we were going to dissect babies. I'm not that big of a monster. But we would examine them for growth patterns, blood work and other properties, yes."

"You would. That means you haven't."

"It's been a no go on successful pregnancies. The fact that you got knocked up at all gave me hope." She crossed her legs. "We could find the answers in children like that. We could find cures to diseases."

"You would make innocent children into your lab rats." The thought sickened me.

"No one is innocent, Sita. Not even you. I'm sure that you have skeletons in your closet."

"Only metaphorical ones. Not real ones. There's a huge difference."

She sighed, exasperated. "It doesn't matter anyway. SHIELD has their own form of testing going on and it looks like I may be coming out of retirement."

"But it would be a different employer. You're not going to jeopardize lives like you were."

"I wish I could be as naive as you." She leaned closer. "Listen, sweetie, SHIELD may look like they're all shiny and polished, but they're just committing the oldest sins in the newest ways."

()

Coulson had recorded the whole conversation, listening in. On my way back to the bus, he spoke in my earpiece: "You did good."

"Yeah, but it doesn't get us any closer to anything."

"You may be surprised."

My steps slowed. "What do you mean?"

"I'm going to speak to Director Fury about this."

I grinned. "Good."

"I thought about having you go with me, but then I remembered the wonderful banter you two like to engage in."

I chuckled. "You're probably right."

"Go ahead and check in with FitzSimmons. I think they had some more news on the box."

()

I gasped as I walked into the lab. There on Fitz's workstation sat an exact replica of what I had drawn out. A chill went over me as I made my way over. "You did it?"

Fitz grinned. "Well, almost. I figured out your design. Just trying to calculate the dimensional navigational properties."

Simmons looked slightly annoyed. "You just missed the part where he tried to convince me that we should test it with a monkey."

I picked up the box, turning it over in my hands. "This is really amazing work, Leo." I pressed in one of the sides, yelping as it slid in, starting to glow.

"No don't!" he cried, snatching it up and trying furiously to shift it back. "I don't know where this-" His sentence was cut off.

Because he vanished with the box.


	17. Blooming Rose

Simmons and I stood frozen in horror, staring at the empty spot that used to contain Leo Fitz. He had simply vanished. And I was responsible for it.

"Oh no, no, no, no, no!" I scrambled over to where he had been, searching all around. "Please oh please say there is a clue here."

"Did that really just happen?" Simmons asked in shock.

I didn't answer her. I just kept searching, hoping the box stayed with some clue or something. Just _anything_ to tell us that Fitz was okay and coming back. "Shit!" I cursed, punching the table.

"What did you do?" she cried out to me. "Where is he?"

"Jemma, please, I'm trying to find out."

The doors to the lab opened, May coming in. "What's going on?"

I took a deep breath. "Fitz is gone."

()

Simmons was inconsolable. Ward had guided her, sobbing, back to her bunk. I was guilt ridden. If I hadn't of played with the damn thing, none of this would have happened.

"The schematics are saved," Skye chimed in, looking through Fitz's computer. "Maybe someone can build another one to get him?"

Coulson paced. "We don't even know where he went."

"I know!" I gasped. "I mean, I know what I pressed on the box. If we have the plans, it can tell us where it was programmed to!"

May walked to the work table and pulled up a 3D image. "Show us."

I pointed. "There."

She pulled that part out, a document file loading with a bunch of things I didn't know about. "We need an engineer to figure this out."

"Replacing me already?"

We all turned to the entrance where Fitz stood, holing the box. I ran to him, throwing my arms around him in a hug. "You're here!"

He hugged me back. "I'm here." He turned to Coulson. "I popped up in the Walk. Took me a bit to find my way out."

"We have to tell Jemma!" I rushed to her room, running to fast that I was panting when I got there. "Fitz… here… lab…" I wheezed.

Ward and Simmons looked at me like I'd grown a third head. Or a second one. I guess I really only had one so any multiple would be weird. I took a moment to catch my breath. "He's still here!"

Her eyes lit up as she bolted down to the lab, Ward and I in toe. At the sight of Fitz, she almost bowled him over, throwing her arms around his neck and kissing him straight on the lips.

My jaw dropped. "Wow…"

She pulled back when she realized we were all watching. "Er, right then, welcome back, Leo." She straightened up and went back to work.

()

If I felt guilty enough to make Ward some fried chicken, Fitz was in for a buffet. Besides making a full turkey with all the trimmings, I baked three pies. By dinnertime, we all gathered around for a real meal together as a team… and sort of as a family, if you really thought about it.

I handed Coulson the carving knife. "It should be you," I smiled warmly.

Platters and bowls began their rotation around as everyone eagerly dug in to a meal of non-takeout food. I kept my meal light, still running on a lot of energy and feeling a bit queasy. I could tell that Coulson was keeping an eye on me, probably still worried about what I wasn't telling Ward.

The meal was well needed. Not because of the actual food, but because it brought us together for something other than the end of the world. As the last of the pie was being scraped from the plates, most of us looked like we were as stuffed as the turkey.

"Best bloody turkey ever," Simmons commended.

"Agreed," Fitz nodded, smiling at me. "Maybe I should disappear more often."

"Don't go giving us that hope," I smiled.

()

Ward stood beside me, washing dishes as I handed them to him. I'd been eerily quiet after everyone cleared the room. I couldn't stop thinking about Holtz's experiments. I couldn't stop thinking about how that if she didn't continue them; it was most likely someone else would. I understood that she wanted to find solutions in the new dimensions, but I just could not come to terms with harming anyone to do so.

A plate slipped from my grasp, shattering on the floor. I jumped back, barefoot and not wanting to get blood all over. Ward's eyes widened. "Are you okay?" He knelt down and started picking up some of the pieces.

I kneeled down with him. "I'm fine. It just slipped."

He stopped me. "I've got it."

I retrieved a dustpan from under the sink. "Here. Don't get yourself cut."

He cleaned up the mess without a problem. "Where are you?" He dumped the glass in the trash. "You looked a million miles away."

I leaned back on the counter. "Holtz was going to experiment on children. Babies."

This got his attention. His eyes flashed with anger. "What?"

I nodded. "I went to talk to her today, to ask her more questions and she told me. They were going to try and crossbreed inter-dimensional children for research." I visibly shuddered. "Just the thought…"

He pulled me close, rubbing my back soothingly. "Hey, it's okay. We got her in time."

I nodded against his chest, although I wondered if that was really true.

()

"We have another 0-8-4," Coulson announced, holding up a file. "We're being detoured out to it while they're still working on the walk here."

We all gathered around the monitoring station, eager for the distraction. "Where we headed?" I asked.

"New Orleans." He brought up a map and images in front of us. "We've received reports of an unknown energy pattern emanating from the home of one Jeff Fleckenstein. He's a resort owner who caters to the wealthy tourists who come to see the diverse paranormal aspects of the city."

Okay, I was excited. I always wanted to see New Orleans. I had loved the cultural melting pot and wanted to explore further.

"What's the game plan?" Ward asked.

"We're going to pull a honey pot to try and gain intel before we make any snap decisions." Coulson switched the map to a copy of a poster. "He's holding a charity ball to help preserve some of the historical sites. And we got an invitation obtained. Skye, you'll run computer ops from the short bus, Ward, you'll be going in as a driver. May, you're on backup and perimeter. FitzSimmons, you'll be monitoring the energy signature from here."

"Oh crap," I muttered. "That means..."

Coulson grinned. "You can handle it. I'm positive."

Skye raised her hand. "Not to sound stupid here but, what's a 'honey pot?'"

I groaned. "I have to seduce him."

()

The flight would be a few hours still and the party was a day away. Ward and Skye sat with me in the lounge, playing Yatzee. He'd been pretty quiet since I got assigned the master seductress role.

Skye jotted down her points and handed me the dice. "So, your first big undercover?"

I nodded and rolled. "Yeah. Saw yours through the Normverse. Not bad."

"It's still trippy to think that you've seen stuff about us that we thought we only knew."

"But you have my utmost confidence. I wouldn't give up things." I glanced at the bracelet.

She noted my glance. "Thank you."

"Some things shouldn't be kept a secret," Ward informed us, taking a swig of water.

"Yeah, I know that, _Gramsy_," I smirked.

Water about shot out his nose. "Oh, no. You didn't..."

I nodded. "Been there, seen that. But don't worry. Only the people in this room know and that's the way it'll stay."

Coulson descended the stairs, holding three velveteen boxes. "Sita?" He stepped over to us, sitting down. "We got these on loan for your party date."

I took the smallest box first, opening it up to find a pair of diamond stud earrings that looked to be about two karats each. I gasped. "Good gravy and garnet."

He chuckled. "It's just a loan."

Quickly, I opened the next smallest box to find a beautiful diamond ring. "Oh, Phil, the answer is yes!" I teased.

"That one is the kicker. It opens. We'll be loading it with a sleeping agent for you to put in his drink."

"Fashion and function. I likes." I opened the last box to a beautiful teardrop diamond pendant necklace. "Oh wow..." I looked up him. "How much would all this stuff cost if I wanted to buy it?"

"Grand total? Three quarters of a million."

Skye reached to look at the earring and I growled. "No touchy! Mine!" I snatched all the boxes and held them close.

Coulson smiled. "Temporarily yours. You also need to try on your dress to see if it needs any alterations."

"Does that have diamonds too?" I hoped.

"No. But it is imported French silk."

Skye pouted. "I didn't get that for my mission."

"You didn't give any prep time," I countered, hopping up. "C'mon! I wanna see the dress!"

()

A few alterations were going to be made when we landed. But the dress itself was so gorgeous. It was a pale peach color, shimmering and sleek. The back dropped down almost to my ass. The front dipped down to show plenty of cleavage. I had never worn anything that made me feel that naked.

Ward hadn't been there for the fitting. I went to his room after, closing the door behind me softly. "You okay?"

He glanced up from sharpening a knife. "Yeah. Just getting some maintenance done."

"You've been pretty quiet since we got our assignment." I sat on the edge of the bed. "You wanna talk about it?"

"There's nothing to talk about. You have your assignment. It's what you have to do."

"You know I don't actually have to have sex with him. I just have to get him to the bedroom and drug him."

"I know. And it's fine. I understand."

"You may understand, but you don't like it."

"Are you surprised? Some guy putting his hands all over you?"

"You didn't have a problem with Coulson..."

His eyes widened. "What?"

I laughed. "I'm kidding. I'm sorry. That really wasn't a good time to joke."

His eyes narrowed. "Really not a good time."

I couldn't help but keep chuckling. "You really thought Coulson and I...?"

"No! That's why I was so shocked." He grinned. "You are horrible."

"I really am. But remember, as Van Wilder always said, 'you should never take life too seriously, you'll never get out alive.'"

()

I swept my hair up into a delicate French twist; up off of my neck and showing off the gorgeous earrings. I kept my makeup light and natural. Looking like a whore was not high on my list. Slipping on the dress, I was astonished at how it hugged every curve. I wasn't even able to wear underwear with it. The jewel around my neck was the finishing touch. I looked like royalty.

Stepping down the stairs in $700 heels, I held my tiny clutch close, nervous. The entire team had gathered around to see the finished product. And they weren't disappointed. I elicited a few gasps from there and stares that made me feel like I really was naked.

Simmons stepped up. "You look ravishing. And I have the finishing touch. Hold out your wrist." I did and she spritzed me with a perfume.

I sniffed it. "That smells good. What is it?"

"Pheromones. It will put off more of your natural sex appeal."

"Jemma!" I gasped, looking around at everyone.

She grinned. "With this much concentration, you'll most likely be attracting even the straightest of woman." She winked.

Ward was dressed in a nice suit, my driver for the evening. He offered his arm. "My lady?"

I pinkened, smiling and taking his arm. "Thank you."

Coulson stopped us. "Earpiece?" He held mine out to me.

"Oh! Right!" I took it, brushing his hand with my fingers and winking, getting into character. "Thank you, kind sir." I slipped it in. "Ready to go!"

()

I was seated in the back of a town-car with tinted windows and leather seats. Ward was all business up front, keeping an eye out as he drove. "Once you're in, I'll take position near the entrance to keep close. May will be posted near the rear."

I nodded, taking out my compact and checking my reflection. "So I drug him, get his cell, plant the tap, find his computer, attach the link, Skye gets all the info."

"That's the plan."

I took a deep breath. "Tell me I can do this."

He smiled. "You can do this."" He meant it, too.

The party was in full swing as he pulled up to the front of the enormous mansion. A valet opened my door and assisted me out. I kept my shoulders back, acting as if I belonged and there was nothing strange about me. The doorman took my invitation and I swayed inside.

I filtered through the crowd with ease, snatching up a glass of champagne and sipping. "No sign yet," I whispered.

"He's on your twelve," Fitz reported.

I turned slowly, matching the face to the photo I had seen earlier. Fleckenstein was a beanpole of a man, nearly six-foot-five and gangly. But he had a smile that lit up the room. His green eyes lifted their gaze to me and he ran his hand through his sandy blonde hair. I smiled a little, taking another sip and making my way over to a fruit display. It didn't take long for him to come over.

"You," he began, "are the most delicate piece of art in this entire house." He took my hand and kissed it softly. "I'm Jeff Fleckenstein, your humble host."

I smiled. "Emma Rose, Boston University Historical Society. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Boston? Quite a drive." He didn't let go of my hand.

"Flight. And well worth it." I took my hand back to pluck up a strawberry.

Skye piped up in my ear. "Tell him you're excited to see the William C. Cook Collection."

I fluttered my eyelashes some. "Perhaps you can give me tour of the William C. Cook Collection sometime." I bit into the strawberry which, let's face, you can't eat a strawberry without looking all seductive.

"I can arrange a private tour." His eyes never left my lips. "Would you like to dance?"

I set my champagne aside. "Of course." I accepted his arm and moved out onto the dance floor with him. His hand slipped around my waist, resting on my bare lower back. He took my other hand in his and proceeded to dance me around the floor.

"I must say, you've giving me cause to change my opinion of Boston," he smirked.

I chuckled. "Aren't you the charmer?"

"Tell me, Miss Rose, are you here with someone this evening?"

I shook my head. "This trip was for me. It's been a dream of mine to visit New Orleans." These words were true. "It's so much culture and so much life all concentrated."

"Here in New Orleans, we know that life is short and meant to be enjoyed." His thumb began to stroke my back. "Will you stay for a while? I have to give a small speech before the auction begins but I would love to give you a tour of some of my pieces here."

I nodded, smiling. "I'd like that."

He released me, kissing my hand again. "Don't float back to Heaven too soon, Miss Rose." He winked and headed to the podium.

I snatched another drink and stayed near the back, taking a deep breath. "Well, not bad." My earpiece began to buzz with chatter.

"You're doing great," May confirmed.

"He's laying it on a little thick," Ward sneered.

"The master bedroom is said to house a piece from William Phillip Spratling called 'Studio with a View of St. Louis Cathedral' stated to be worth $250,000," Skye relayed. "I'd open with that."

"Can do." I sipped the champagne.

"Easy on the booze," Ward warned.

I glanced around. "Dude are you stalking me?"

"I'm your eyes, remember?"

I wondered what those eyes thought of the caresses Fleckenstein was attempting on the dance floor. "I know. And thank you."

As his speech ended, Fleckenstein shook hands with a few people, slowly making his way back to me. "Sorry about the delay, Miss Rose."

"Please," I urged. "Call me Emma."

He beamed. "Emma." He brushed my arm lightly with his fingers. "Did you need to bid in the auction?"

I shook my head. "No. I was actually looking around trying to see if I could find the 'Studio with a View of St. Louis Cathedral.'"

His smile turned a bit lecherous. "You know your pieces. That one is here, but it's part of my private collection."

I stepped a little closer to him. "I don't suppose that you'd be interested in letting me see it?" I fiddled with the lapel of his jacket. "This place is getting a little crowded and after the champagne, I could use a little air."

He took my hand. "This way." Taking up a new bottle of champagne, he led me to the staircase and upstairs.

Ward's voice rang true in my ear. "I have your back. You'll be fine."


	18. Blotto

The air was warmer upstairs, all the windows opened and a breeze carrying the noises from the streets below. Fleckenstein and moved his hand to my back as he pointed out various pieces. Skye fed me information on each one so I didn't look like a moron.

We finally made it to the master bedroom which was almost as big as my first apartment. A lavish four post bed was in the middle, a fireplace, vanity and mini bar placed around for a very romantic atmosphere. I noted the fire was already going. He'd been expecting to bring someone up here. Pig.

He set the champagne on the bar and plucked out two glasses. Above the bar was the painting, completely with plaque to let me know. I traced my fingers along the marble of the bar. "It truly is a wonderful piece."

He poured us both a glass. "True perfection lies in the smile of a beautiful woman." I could almost see Ward rolling his eyes.

I beamed and "accidentally" knocked over my glass. "Oh! Oh I'm so sorry."

He chuckled. "It's okay. Let me get a towel." He headed to the bathroom.

Quickly, I dumped the contents of my ring into his glass, pouring another one for myself as he came out. "This must be good champagne," I mused, sipping my glass. "I don't usually feel this warm so fast." I finished off my glass, motioning. "You're a little behind." I set my glass down and swayed towards the bed.

He downed his fast, following me. "If you're warm, perhaps more air on your beautiful skin would help." He caressed my back softly.

"Best things come to those who wait." I put my hand to his face, letting my eyes trail to his lips, giving him a green light.

He kissed me softly, pulling me against him with a moan. I started moving us towards the bed. If he was going to pass out, I didn't want to injure the guy. But that plan kind of backfired. He laid me down, covering me with his body as he kissed me deeper, his hand slipping inside the top of my dress and cupping my breast. I whimpered in surprise and he took that as a good sign.

But he stopped, opening his eyes wide and whispering "What?" before promptly passing out on top of me.

"Oh great. Grant, get in here," I instructed, annoyed. "I'm pinned under Passed Out Man."

Ward slipped into the bedroom carefully, checking out the entire room first to secure it then turning to me, taking out his phone, and snapping a picture. "For the scrapbook," he smirked as he helped roll Fleckenstein off of me.

"You had better delete that before I stuff that phone where you don't want it." I sat up, straightening my dress and swaying a little. "Whoa, okay, now I see what you said take it easy on the booze."

He rolled his eyes, fetching my clutch from the bar as I slipped Fleckenstein's cell from his jacket. Once that tap was in place, I turned my attention to finding his computer.

"I'm going to get the car," Ward informed me. "Meet me downstairs in ten."

I nodded and slipped into an adjoining room. Good call. It was his office. Quickly, I snapped the device onto the back of the PC tower. As I stood, the door opened. Two men in suits with secret service style earpieces looked right at me.

"Is this the powder room?" I asked innocently.

They stepped forward quickly, each grabbing an arm. "Wait!" I pleaded. "What's going on?" They weren't listening. They were marching me to another room. Oh this wasn't good.

Which is why you trust your team. May slipped down from the ceiling onto the first guy, toppling me into the second. After knocking out both, she held out a hand to help me up, silent. I composed myself and proceeded down the stairs to the front door while she headed back out the way she came.

Ward was waiting at the curb and I happily slipped in, shutting the door. "Score."

()

The information was flowing from the tracers when I made it back to the bus. I stumbled out of the backseat and into Ward's arms with a hiccup. "Wee!" I giggled.

Coulson looked concerned. "How much did she have to drink?"

I pulled away from Ward and smiled to our team leader. "Enough that I'm picturing a three-way in my bunk tonight."

FitzSimmons and Skye attempted to keep their snickers to themselves, failing. May kept her eyes on me, not looking happy. Ward was attempting to keep me from undressing right there. "I didn't think she had that much!" he exclaimed.

"It'll wear off overnight. She just needs to get to bed," Simmons assured.

I grinned. "I'll get to bed alright..." I pinched Ward's butt, making him jump.

Coulson pinched the bridge of his nose. "Just get her to her room and don't ruin the dress. That's all I ask."

()

I knew I still had my head. How did I know? Because it felt like it was exploding. I groaned and buried my face in the pillow.

"Sita?" Ward whispered softly. "I have orange juice."

I slowly turned to him, opening my eyes. He had all the lights turned down. "Okay."

He helped me sit up. "Hangover?"

I nodded and sipped the juice. "I didn't make a fool of myself, right?"

He grimaced. "Define 'fool.'"

()

Sadly, I brought the jewelry boxes up to Coulson's office and knocked before going in. He looked up from his work. "Good afternoon."

I held up the boxes. "You're breaking my heart."

"I thought I might have broken your heart when I turned down the three-way last night."

"Oh sweet baby Jesus, I didn't..."

"Proposition a senior agent in our loading bay?" He smiled. "Sure did." He took the boxes from me. "But you did great work last night. Even under extenuating circumstances." He set the boxes aside. "In any case, I'm proud of you. Emma Rose."

I smiled. "The name just sounded good." I couldn't look at him. I'd asked Agent Phil Coulson to have sex. This was so embarrassing.

"And where did you pull out Boston?"

I scuffed my shoe. "Just wanted a place far away."

"What's wrong?"

I finally looked up, a little skittish. "I asked you to have sex!"

He laughed. "Sita, you were drunk. You had pheromones all over. Your body reacted."

I didn't want to point out that I didn't proposition Fitz or any of the women. "Yeah, true."

"We're fine. I promise."

I stood to go but paused, remembering some. "Hey, you didn't technically say no to me."

"I certainly didn't say yes, either."

()

Ward was taking some solo training time, hitting the bag hard, focused. I sat at the top of the stairs watching, trying to gage exactly what this onslaught of punches was all about. He couldn't have still been upset about the honey pot. No, this was something different. The fire behind his eyes was deep. This was something that burned down to his core.

After about ten minutes, he stopped, holding the bag and panting, staring through it. "You gonna talk?"

"Didn't want to disturb you." I came down the stairs slowly.

He began punching again. "You're not disrupting."

"Honey, what is it? I'm worried about you."

The punches gained momentum again. "You don't have to worry."

"Part of trusting me and my loyalty is that you can talk to me about anything."

He stopped punching again, still looking at the bag. "I'm afraid that you'll be mad at me."

I inhaled. "Whatever it is, was it to protect me?"

He nodded.

I leaned back on the hood of the SUV. "Tell me."

"I didn't even think about it. Then you talked about Holtz and her plans. I knew that somewhere inside, you must have known."

My eyes widened. Did he know? How could he? "Known what?"

He swallowed thickly, starting to unwrap his hands. "There was nothing to be done. You'd been hurt so bad. That propeller had lodged so deep. I thought that I'd lost you."

"Look at me."

He looked up with sad eyes. "You'd been pregnant. Lost it with your injuries. Simmons found out in your bloodwork. I made her swear not to tell you."

I softened. "Grant…" I went to him and hugged him, sweat and grime be damned. "I found out a few days ago. I dug in after Holtz's interview. I didn't tell you for the same reasons you didn't tell me."

His body sagged with relief as he hugged me. "I didn't know what to do. They don't really train you for that in field work."

I put my hand to his cheek. "Hey, it's okay. Like you said, there was nothing we could do. And we can't go back in time."

He caressed my hair. "But we could try again."

My jaw dropped. "Huh?"

"Not now." His eyes went wide. "I mean, the future always holds possibilities."

"I about had a heart attack!" I smacked his chest.

"Sorry. We'd have to be out of the field and married first." He chuckled.

Was that a proposal? "Yeah, and that's a ways away." I let him go. "I think you should go shower up. We got a hit on the 0-8-4."

()

We all gathered in the lab where Fitz was giddy. "It's amazing. We hit the jackpot on this one."

Coulson crossed his arms. "What is it?"

Fitz pulled up an image. "It's Sita's portal box."


	19. Sidebar

"Now if you listen closely, I'll tell you what I know. Storm clouds are gathering. The wind is gonna blow. The race of man is suffering, and I can hear the moan, 'Cause nobody, but nobody can make it out here alone." I read the words from the book of poetry in front of me. The words echoed my own thoughts. I closed the book, heavy in thought but not sad. I would be staying here, even with the box in our possession.

We had time to kill as Fitz prepared Ward's gear for the retrieval so Simmons and I were having girl time. She finished the second coat of polish on my toenails and screwed the lid on the container. "Good thing you're not alone." She blew on my toes.

I smiled. "I know." I patted my lap. "Your turn."

She propped her feet up, handing me the bottle. "I know I shouldn't be asking this, but…" She bit her lip. "Agent Ward… in the boudoir…" She pinkened.

"Why, Jemma Simmons! You're asking how Grant is in the sack?" I giggled and began painting.

"Well, since you brought it up," she smiled.

"He's not the one in charge, if that's what you think." I winked.

"Ooo, interesting." She giggled and grabbed my bag of M&M's. "And… is he… equipped for the job?"

"You naughty girl!" I bit my lip. "And… yes. Very."

She threw a candy at me. "You minx!"

I dodged, laughing. "What?"

"Now I won't be able to look him in the eye every again!" She laughed with me.

"Gonna just stare straight at his crotch instead?" I guessed.

"No!" She turned beet red. "You are so evil."

"You started it," I countered. "Now I have to tell you that he makes this cute little whimper if you tickle behind his ear."

Her eyes widened. "No!"

I nodded. "Very sensitive there. Dare me to prove it?"

Her eyes narrowed with mischief. "Yes. In front of everyone." She beamed.

"Okay." I nodded, applying a second coat to her toes. "And if I do, you have to kiss Coulson. On the mouth."

"You don't know who you're speaking to, love. I was a truth or dare champion back in university."

()

The evening meal was some Creole food from a nice little restaurant, giving all of us a break on the cooking aspect of things. Seated next to Ward, I saw Simmons smile to me. She was waiting. And I wasn't one to lose a dare. "Grant? Would you pass the cornbread?"

He nodded and leaned to grab the basket. As he did, I leaned over and bit gently behind his ear on his neck. "Nuhung," he choked out as he dropped the basket, his knee jerking up to hit the table.

Simmons and I had to keep from laughing. The rest of the table just froze and looked at him as a blush crept up all the way to the tops of his ears. I just plucked up a piece of the cornbread and smiled. "Thanks." I turned my gaze to Simmons and raised my eyebrow. It was her turn. She just nodded in return. She wasn't going to kiss him while he was eating and I was okay with that. As long as I was there to see it, she was safe.

Her chance came as Coulson was about to take the trash out. She stepped in front of him. "Why don't you let me take that, sir?" she smiled, bright eyed.

He returned her smile. "Thank you, Agent Simmons."

As he held out the bag to her, she grabbed his wrist, tugging him to her and planting her lips right on his for a solid twenty seconds. I smiled proudly as, once again, the rest of team looked on in frozen shock.

As Simmons pulled back, she took the trash from him. "You're welcome, Agent Coulson." With a skip in her step, she turned to take out the trash.

Coulson was still standing frozen, his hand still held up as if he was holding the trash bag. "What just happened there?" His gaze turned to me. "And why do I think you were involved in that?"

"Why me?" I asked, feigning astonishment.

"What's going on here?"

I smiled. "Nothing. I am a perfect angel."

Ward snorted at that and I elbowed him in the ribs.

()

I caught up with Simmons as she was coming back from the trash. "What's the next dare?" I giggled.

"You think you can play with the big kids now, do you?" She smiled evilly. "Well then, let's see. I dare you to eat all of Fitz' chocolate pudding. Or dump it down a drain if you're not hungry. Just make it disappear."

Fitz loved his pudding. It was his late night ritual to eat some. And the one time Coulson had forgot to add it to the restock list, he'd thrown a fit that led to an accidental shot from the night-night gun.

"Hmm, and if I do that, you need to mix up something in Ward's shampoo to change his hair bright blue."

"Done." Ward's shampoo was this special salon brand that he swore by and no one else was allowed to touch. So we wouldn't risk turning everyone's hair.

"This is going to be interesting."

()

Everyone had gone to their bunks for the night. Ward was going to pull a mid-day job to get the box. The security was lessened in the daylight at the cemetery entrance. That gave Simmons and I a little more time to carry out this dare war.

Creeping as quietly as I could, I made it to the fridge, taking out the three containers of pudding marked "FITZ ONLY" and ran to the bathroom, rinsing out two of the containers down the toilet and taking the last one to my room to eat. After, I hid the containers in Simmons' locker in the lab. She didn't say I had to make the containers disappear.

Around one in the morning, a choked out cry woke us. I put on a robe and met everyone in the kitchen.

"Well it didn't just get up and walk out!" Fitz was screeching in a higher octave than his normal voice.

May rolled her eyes. "It's just pudding."

"Just _pudding?_" he questioned, appalled. "That's like saying this is just a propeller plane or that the Lola is just a bucket of bolts!"

"Hey now," Coulson warned.

"Exactly! It's not _just_ pudding. It's _the_ pudding. And it had my name on it!"

Skye shook her head. "I see the night-night gun coming out again."

Fitz took some deep breaths, trying to calm. "No, no it's not necessary. I just... want to know who took it!"

I kept my game face on. No way was I eluding to the fact that Simmons and I were up to this. "Are you sure you didn't just run out?"

He rolled his eyes. "Uh, gee, let me thing, did you just run out of air? No. You'd notice!"

"I'm getting the gun," Coulson sighed.

"No!" Fitz dashed for the lab. Oh this was going to be good. I'd left Simmons' locker door a little ajar and if you bumped into it, it would pop open and the containers would fall out. I had thought that it would be funny for the next day, but tonight worked.

As Fitz secured the gun, I bumped into Skye a little and she shifted on her feet, hitting Simmons' locker. It was a success. The containers fell out.

Everyone looked in shock to Simmons. "I have no clue how those got there!" she pleaded.

Fitz was seeing red. He kneeled down and picked up one of the containers. "Did you _wash_ them?" He was horrified. But not for long as Coulson shot him with the night-night gun. "Get him to bed," he instructed Ward, glancing over to me and Simmons. I had slipped up. There was a look of triumph on my face and he caught it. "Everyone go back to your bunks. Sita, you stay here a second."

My eyes widened. Crap on toast. "Sure." When everyone left, I began wringing my hands together.

"You dumped the pudding," he informed me.

"I was dared," I defended.

"Simmons," he deduced. "Look, I'm all for a little fun now and then, but let's just cool it until after the mission tomorrow."

"Er, well..."

He sighed. "She has a dare to complete."

"Last one. I promise." I held up my hand. "Swear."

"Do I even want to know?"

"It's best if you don't. Plausible deniability and all." I patted his arm. "At least you got a kiss out of it."

()

"Son of a..." The bathroom door slammed open to reveal Ward, towel wrapped around his waist, bright blue hair atop his head. "Who did it?" he bellowed.

My eyes got so wide they about popped out of my head. "Honey, what happened?" I came over and touched his hair. "What did this?" I'd like to thank the Academy.

"That's what I want to know!"

Skye came around the corner and her jaw dropped. "Holy shit."

He gave her a look that would freeze boiling water. "Don't. Say. A word."

She pressed her lips together, suppressing a laugh.

I rubbed his arm. "You have a mission to get ready for. We'll figure this out. You get dressed." A smile was twinkling in my eyes.

He tilted his head, studying my face. "You know."

I sighed. "Well, someone was complaining that you were so picky about your hair."

"Who."

"Who could turn your hair blue?"

The connection was made. He took in a deep breath. "Right."

A soft click caught our attention. Skye was holding up her cell, smiling. "Uh, forgot to silence the camera snap."

He took a step to her. "Give me the phone."

"Hmm, let me think about that." Smiling, she ran.

He was about to give chase but I grabbed his towel. He skidded to a stop, covering himself with his hands. "Sita!" Grumbling, he snatched up the towel and went to dress.


	20. Punching the Clock

Note: Lyrics from _~Wild Horses_~ by the Rolling Stones

Coulson had pulled Simmons and I aside after the blue hair incident and banned us from dare wars. She was ordered to turn Ward's hair back to normal before the mission since he would stick out like a sore thumb.

"You know," I told her as we headed down to the lab. "I totally won."

She pulled out a few containers, mixing a dye. "How so?"

"I implicated you in _everything_ and the only way I got caught was Coulson reading me."

"Well, I'm glad you think that you're the winner." Not really a concession but still.

After Ward's hair was back to normal, we regained focus and got prepared for the task at hand. There was a break in security around noon for lunch. Not many people visited the cemetery then so the secret entrance wouldn't be as visited by normal people. However, it still had a high tech security system. Fitz had created a couple of devices that would get Ward in.

"And what's the contingency plan?" I asked after everything was mapped out.

"Don't need one. I go in alone. I get the job done."

I hated that line. "Right. Gotcha." I clinched my jaw.

"Let's move out," Coulson ordered.

()

May and I sat in the SUV, watching Ward's signal and waiting to be his transport. Neither of us spoke, the silence saying a lot more. This was the biggest mission yet. Not for the difficulty, but for the prize: a working dimensional portal box back to Normverse.

I jumped when May reached for her water. She paused, looking over to me. "Little tense?"

"Lost in thought."

"Pull your focus," she instructed. "Keep your gaze sharp and take in everything around you. We have to make sure that when Ward is ready, the coast is clear."

I nodded. This was my first live training from May. I closed my eyes for a moment and breathed in deep, like she had taught me. Opening my eyes back up, my vision and focus was clearer. We were three blocks from the cemetery and it was bustling with tourist and locals in the nearby restaurants. No one looked out of place. I gazed around for signs of Fleckenstein's security patrol but everyone seemed to look pretty normal.

"There." May gave a nod out the windshield. "The guy in the green shirt. He's been glancing over here and then going back to his book. I caught him three times. He's also touched his ear once."

I casually turned my glance and noticed what she did. Green shirt was also wearing a light jacket despite the blistering humid heat. "Think he's armed?"

"More than likely. And I'll bet he has a partner."

I began to scan around for one. "Blind guy?" I guessed, nodding to the man with the walking stick and extra dark glasses, leaning on a wall.

She pursed her lips. "Possibly."

I unbuckled my seatbelt. "I'm going to get a cup of coffee and pass by him."

"Be careful."

"Always." Slipping out, I straightened my tank top and pulled my hair up off my neck. What was with the humidity, man? Jogging, I crossed the busy street and slowed up by a coffee cart. "Large non-fat, no whip, white mocha," I ordered.

The man nodded, getting it ready as I dug out some money from my jeans. Change dropped to the ground, clanging loudly. I got some applause and bent down to get it, looking over at the blind man to find him grinning a little. It appeared to me that he was looking down my shirt. Blind my ass.

I paid for my coffee and jogged back to May, giving a nod as I got in. "Yeah, it's him."

May started the van, touching her ear. "Re-positioning to second point. Possible hostiles." She drove around the corner and up a different block. "When I park, move to the driver's seat and be ready. I'll neutralize the hostiles."

"Yes, ma'am." As I moved to her seat, I gripped the wheel, nervous. I had no doubt that May would have the situation under control but you never knew, with my luck, if anything was going to happen.

"Secure the package," Ward's voice came through. "Heading to point two."

"Copy," I replied. This earpiece radio stuff was so cool. Soon, the sliding door opened and Ward slipped in, looking at me in confusion. "Where's Agent May?"

"Taking out the hostiles." I touched my ear. "May? All clear?"

She opened the passenger door. "All clear." She hopped back in. "Ready to head back to base."

I started the engine, driving. "Dude, did we really just pull that off without me getting hurt?"

"Don't jinx it," Ward groaned.

()

The jinx didn't work. I pulled onto the ramp and cut the engine. "We did it!" I was jubilant as I climbed out with my coffee and followed everyone to the lab for the reveal. Everyone gathered around as Ward set the case on the table. Fitz popped it open, revealing my puzzle box.

I gasped some. It had been almost three months in this world. Seeing that box again was like a dream. I stepped over and picked it up, turning it over in my hands. "This is it," I confirmed. "This is what started it all."

"Such a small thing to make such a big change," Simmons awed.

I gave it over to Fitz. "I can tell you the pattern I used to get here."

He nodded and began scanning the device. "That would be a good starting point."

"Let's get in the air. I don't want to be around for Fleckenstein's retaliation." Coulson nodded to May who went to the cockpit. "Good work, all of you. Smooth mission."

"Thank you, sir," Ward acknowledged.

Coulson went back to his office, FitzSimmons getting to work on the box. I followed Ward back to his room so he could change into something more comfortable than tactical gear. I sat on the bed as he pulled out a pair of jeans. "You do work better alone," I observed.

He tossed the jeans on the bed and dug for a shirt. "It's what I do."

"Is it still what you _want _to do?" I hugged my knees to my chest and rested my chin on them.

He thought as he changed clothes. "I want to make a difference. So yeah, I want to do this." He sat next to me. "What's on your mind?"

"It's stupid but, I really want to visit my friends and have them meet you."

"You want them to meet a TV character or your boyfriend?" He tucked some hair behind my ear.

I smiled to him. "My boyfriend."

He kissed me softly. "Let's see what FitzSimmons can do with the box first. Then we'll talk about our options."

"That sounds really reasonable. When did you get all reasonable?" I chuckled.

"I'm learning. Coulson was right. You've been good for me."

"You're the not only one learning, Grant. You've got strength in you that I'm learning from." I unfolded myself and hugged him tight around his waist, laying my head on his chest and listening to his heart.

He rubbed my back as he held me. "You're teaching me to care again. And to trust." He kissed the top of my head. "I love you, Sita."

I stilled, my own heart pounding. This was the first time the "L" word was dropped. And like I had told Coulson, I'd been hurt in the past, too. So that word didn't come easy from my lips. I just hugged him a little tighter, saying nothing.

He didn't seem to mind, just kept rubbing my back, swaying just a little. "You haven't sung in a while. I miss that."

I grinned. "Well some ass kept pulling out my ear buds and scaring me so I decided to ditch that idea."

"Want me to beat him up for you?"

I nodded. "Yeah."

His chuckle vibrated against my cheek. "For now, will you sing for me?"

I moved back from him, sitting up against the headboard, stretching out my legs. "Lay your head down." He obliged, lying down with his head resting in my lap. I softly caressed his hair as I began to sing. "_~Childhood living, you know it's easy to do. The things that you wanted, I bought them for you.~_" I choked up a little at the chorus. "_~Wild horses couldn't drag me away. Wild, wild horses, we'll ride them someday.~_" A tear fell from my cheek, landing on his forehead. That song always got to me.

He looked to my face. "You okay?"

I nodded. "Just a good song."

"And a beautiful voice singing it." He smiled.

I returned his smile and wiped my eyes. "Thank you."

He sat up, brushing a tear that I'd missed from my cheek, his eyes locking with mine. We hadn't made love or even slept in the same room since our fight. This right here, the singing and holding, it was the most intimate we'd been in a while. We both knew it. And I knew he wanted more. I did, too. Being apart like this made me realize how much I longed for his touch.

I kissed him softly, tenderly, closing my eyes and letting him fill my other senses. He shifted onto his stomach and pulled me down to lay, covering me slightly with his strong frame. I sighed contently as he nibbled on my lower lip, his hand splaying over my rib cage, warmth spreading through the fabric of my tank top. I pulled up my leg over his hip, trying to meld into him. He trailed his kisses down my jaw to my neck, softly moaning my name and sending chills down my spine. I gripped his shoulders as he started to inch up my top.

A knock at the door stopped him, eliciting a growl of anger. "Who is it?"

"Coulson. Need to go over your report."

"Later!" he barked. His eyes widened as he realized he was addressing a superior agent. "Uh, I mean, be right there!" He sighed heavily, burying his face in my neck. "Damn his timing."

I ran my fingers through his hair. "Just going to have to calm yourself, Agent." I raked a nail lightly behind his ear.

He moaned. "You're making it hard."

The double meaning didn't elude me. "After dinner. I'll stay in here tonight."

His eyes met mine. "You promise?"

I nodded. "Yeah. I haven't been sleeping well in there alone, anyway."

"Same." He kissed me. "Get out of here for a minute though. Can't really report to Coulson like this."

()

I came out of his bunk with a total shit-eating grin on my. Skye looked over from the couch. "Nice hair."

I smiled and went to my bunk to straighten up before coming back out and sitting with her. "Whatcha doing?"

She lowered her phone. "Tweeting. The more interesting question is: what are _you_ doing?"

"Well, nothing yet." I leaned back, smiling.

"Oh good, I'll have a chance to grab some noise cancelling headphones." She laughed.

Ward came out of his bunk, composed and professional. He gave Skye and I a nod. "Ladies."

I whispered to Skye. "Watch this." I cleared my throat. "Ward?"

He turned. "Yeah?"

Quickly, I lifted up my shirt, flashing him. He just stared for a moment, and then headed back to his bunk. Skye and I about pissed ourselves laughing.

()

I brought Fitz some hot chocolate. "How goes it?"

He took the chocolate with a soft "thank you," looking preoccupied. "Well, it… it doesn't work."

I did a double take. "Run that by me again?"

"The power source seems to be completely drained. The box is… dead."


	21. Subject Matter

"Whatever alien or inter-dimensional technology that this box possessed is entirely depleted." Fitz gave the news to all of us as we stared in disbelief. "It appears that Sita's jump used the entire thing."

I picked up the box, pressing in the pattern I had before. The box locked into place but Fitz had been correct. Nothing happened. "So I'm stuck. But more importantly, no one else can steal it." I sat the box back down with a sigh. "So we're back to using the Walk as the only way to port."

Coulson crossed his arms. "There's also the prototype box that popped Fitz into the Walk. How was that powered?"

Fitz shook his head. "Just a fraction of arc reactor tech. From the data I ran when I returned, it won't work for actual inter-dimensional travel. We'd have to have Stark's full size reactor to make a jump outside of the Walk."

"So that's that," I concluded. "I am a permanent resident of this dimension."

"We don't know…" Coulson began.

I raised my hand to stop him. "No, it's okay. It just confirmed what I already felt was right. Now we can focus more on stopping whatever project Holtz and Eric were up to. That's easier." I was trying to convince myself more than anyone else. "I'm gonna go get dinner started. Everyone okay with spaghetti?" I didn't wait for the answer, just turned and left.

()

I chopped garlic furiously, taking out what little aggression I had. I loved it here and would be happy to stay. But knowing that I could never get a message to my family and friends was the heartbreaker. I chucked the garlic into the pot of diced tomatoes and grabbed some oregano and basil. This was my family now. This group of people loved and cared for me for whom I was. I finished my sauce, adding the ground sausage last, and then set a large pot of water to boil for the pasta.

"You want to talk?" Coulson asked from behind me.

I shook my head. "Making dinner."

"You multitask better than most." He sat down at the counter. "You told me you wanted to stay. Did that change?"

I tossed a bunch of dried pasta into the boiling water. "No. But… there's no way to let anyone in Normverse know that I'm okay."

"Just because we can't port a person doesn't mean FitzSimmons won't find a way to get messages through. You just have to believe."

"I am so done with believing. Journey is going to be so pissed." I pulled out some vegetables for a salad.

He frowned. "I'm sorry, Sita. I don't know what else to say."

I sighed and stopped chopping mid slice. "You don't have to say anything. I know you're here for me. I appreciate it and that's why you're one of my closest confidants. It's just going to take time."

He nodded. "I can give you that." He stood. "Oh, and please have Ward go to your room tonight if you want. I had Fury soundproof it when he built it. I said you snored like a foghorn."

I smiled. "Can do."

()

After dinner, I did invite Ward back to my bunk. But he could tell that our previous plan might not be in action. I changed into my nightshirt and slipped under the covers. He followed suit, dressing down to his boxers. Once beside me, he held me close. "You doing okay?"

"Yeah." I gave him the cliff notes of my conversation with Coulson. "So I'll be okay. I have a family here and that helps. It's not like I'm stranded alone." I laid my head on his chest. "So we're headed back to Canada, I guess."

"Looks like. If nothing else, we'll check in with Fury's mobile command."

"I'm hoping for another assignment. I really am tired of dimensional crap."

He chuckled. "You are too cute."

"Mmm-hmm. And I'm all yours in a soundproofed room."

He perked. "Soundproof?"

()

I limped out of bed the next morning, wrapped in a snug terrycloth robe, hair tussled and glazed look in my eyes. May looked up from the coffee pot and raised an eyebrow. "You missed training."

"I did get a workout, though!" I smiled. "Three times."

She grinned at that. "Well, if you got your cardio in…"

Fitz came in next, groggy, worn out and disappointed. I knew he wanted the box to work as bad as I did. Poor guy. "Hey Fitz?"

He looked over. "Aye?"

I opened my robe for a moment, let him get an eyeful, and then tied it up. "Keep up the good work." I snagged two cups of coffee and left the stunned engineer with my SO.

()

Ward sat up when I brought in the coffee. "Oh yes." He reached out and winced. "Oh man, I think I pulled something."

I gave him his cup. "That's what we get for trying the bionic seahorse move." I kissed him. "Sleep good?"

He nodded, inhaling the aroma of his mug. "Much better. Of course, I was worn out."

"Yeah, lightweight." I winked.

He rubbed the back of his neck. "Should have requested a larger bed in here. That last position…"

"I know. I agree." I paused. "You ever seen Coulson's room? Does he have a normal bunk?"

"We did it in Lola. You wanna do it in his bunk?"

"I just think that if we're bunking together, then he could swap rooms with us."

"Yeah, go ahead and try that." He snorted and drank his coffee. "What time is it?"

I looked to my little alarm. "After ten."

"Shit!" He hopped up, almost spilling his coffee. "I'm late for training." Scrambling, he gathered up his clothes.

"Sad time. Grant is dressing." I pouted. "May let me off the hook today."

"Yeah, but I'm the SO. I have to be there. And she's progressing well. If she could just figure out the safety release verses the magazine release…"

()

All my life, I'd loved snow. Now, visiting the Walk for yet another time, I was finding myself connecting snow to the heartache of all this. Once we were secure on the ground, Coulson and FitzSimmons went to join up with Fury's research team with my powered down box. As I entered the camp area, I was horrified to find Holtz at her old desk, using her tablet.

"What are you doing?" I snapped.

She looked up and smiled. "Working." I wanted to knock that grin right off her face.

"You've got to be kidding me."

She stood, going over to a table and preparing injections. I about gagged. "Not kidding. I've been given a green light on a few things."

I stepped to the table. "I should just wipe this whole table off and trash your precious work."

"You could. But then we'd lose any possible data for this." Turning quickly, she stabbed a needle into my arm and pressed the plunger.

I jumped back, too late. "What the hell did you just do?" I cried out, panicking.

"We'll find out. I either made you a new superior being or killed you." She went back to her tablet. "Tell me, are you feeling anything initially?"

I stared at my arm in disbelief. "Shock."

She nodded. "Emotional trauma aside, how are you physically?"

Was this happening? She'd just injected me with an alien substance and I'd seen some of what that can do to people. I choked back a sob. "You really are a monster," I told her.

"Yes, I really am."

I ran out of the room, bee lining it for the bus.

()

"GRANT!" I screamed as soon as I hit the ramp, tears rolling down my cheeks. I dropped to my knees on the cold metal, burying my face in my hands.

He bolted to me from upstairs, May close on his heels. "Sita! What is it?" He knelt down in front of me. I couldn't talk, I was sobbing in fear. "Baby, you have to talk to me," he pleaded. "Are you injured?"

I nodded, taking in large gulps of air. "Holtz," I managed to get out.

His eyes flashed with anger and he looked up to May. "Get Coulson." He lifted me up into his arms, carrying me into the lab.

Skye finally made it in, her concern plain on her face. "What happened?"

Ward shook his head. "I don't know. She just said 'Holtz' and won't stop crying. I don't see any wounds. I can't… I don't know what to do!"

Skye pushed passed him, taking my hand. "Look at me, Sita. Breathe." I tried to focus on her, finally getting in a good deep breath. "There ya go. One more," she urged. I obliged, regaining some composure. She stroked my hair back. "What happened?"

I swallowed. "Holtz injected me."

Ward and Skye exchanged looks of shock.

"She said she either made me super or killed me." I started to cry again. "I'm her new lab rat."

Coulson ran in with the rest of the team as Ward sat heavily on a stool. "What's going on?"

()

FitzSimmons had me hooked up to various monitor and do-dads as I sat looking blank. I had showered, dressed in shorts and a tank top, pulled my hair back and settled in for my new role as a test subject. I felt numb. There was no way to know what Holtz's injection would do. Coulson had reported the incident to Fury and Holtz was now under a stricter watch. But the damage was done. Fury had obtained all of her notes and gave them to FitzSimmons to help. The solution she'd injected had been one for speed and agility. If it worked like it said, I would basically be a world class gymnast if I trained a little for technique.

Simmons unhooked me. "I think you should take a break."

I shrugged. "Whatever. If you have more to do, do it."

She looked so sad for me. "Sita, go see Grant. We have plenty to work with for now."

I got up, nodding. "Okay." Everything was as monotone as my voice. I made my way up to the living area to find it empty. Sighing, I ascended the stairs to Coulson's office to hear raised voices.

"Frankly, sir, that's a load of crap," Ward sneered.

"We can't go back in time. We have to deal with what we have."

"We don't know what we have. Thanks to Fury."

"He doesn't make the call on his own. And he didn't know that Holtz would do what she did."

"Some spy."

Coulson's tone took an edge. "Watch yourself, Agent Ward."

There was a pause. "Yes, sir."

I knocked on the doorframe, drawing their attention. "Hey."

The tension fled from the room, replaced with thick guilt and worry. Ward came to me first. "Hey."

I took his hand and gave it a squeeze. "Both of you can stop. What's done is done. I know Holtz made the choice herself and that while we can play 'pin the blame' until we're blue in the face, it doesn't matter."

"We'll make this right," Coulson assured me.

I nodded. "You have the best. I know that Jemma and Leo are hashing out the details now. And who knows? Maybe I'll get super spy powers or something."

He nodded. "Until then, let us know of anything you want. It's yours."

I looked down. "I want to be normal."

()

It was the middle of the night when the pain first hit. My ribcage felt like someone threw twenty daggers at it. I curled up tight, biting back a scream. Ward instantly woke beside me at the movement. "Sita?" He put a hand on my shoulder. "What is it?"

"Oh god it hurts to bad," I whimpered. I began coughing next, covering my mouth and bringing my hand back with blood. "I'm dying…"


	22. Version 2

"It's ebbing," I informed Ward as he brought me to the lab, Simmons close by. "It's getting better." I held my ribs. He set me down in the exam chair.

Simmons clipped a device to my arm. "Your vitals are stable and…" She grabbed her tablet, flicking through screens. "Your muscle structure is changing…"

"Changing?" I lifted my hand to look at it, flexing my fingers. I could feel what she meant. I was coiled. "What do you see?"

"Skeletal muscle is anchored by tendons to bone and is used to effect skeletal movement such as locomotion and in maintaining posture. Though this postural control is generally maintained as an unconscious reflex, the muscles responsible react to conscious control like non-postural muscles." She flipped up images over the table. "Besides surrounding each fascicle, the perimysium is a pathway for nerves and the flow of blood within the muscle. Your perimysium is allowing a flow nearly twenty times normal human function." She was in complete awe. "The efficiency of human muscle has been measured in the context of rowing and cycling at 18% to 26%. And you're cycling at 73%!"

Ward shook his head. "English?"

Simmons beamed. "It's working."

I smiled. "Not dying."

()

I stood on the flight deck of Fury's mobile command, dressed in tight clothing that I would have pictured on Agent Romanov. The team was gathered, along with Agent Hill and Director Fury. It was testing time. I had already ran laps at seventy miles an hour. It was time for something bigger.

I stifled a gasp as the Black Widow entered the scene, dressed almost identical to me.

"Sita," Fury began, "meet Agent Natasha Romanov."

I nodded. "Black Widow. It's an honor."

She nodded in return. "Director Fury has advised me to come at you full speed. Let me know when it hurts."

I swallowed and held my breath. In an instant, she began to move, but to me, it was like watching a movie in slow motion. As she approached, I saw her arm starting to toss something my way. I rolled to the left, coming up behind her and pushing her with both hands, knocking her down. "Cheese and rice," I whispered.

She was up in no time, recalculating her attack since she now had a new piece of the puzzle. With a flick of her wrists, she tossed two disks my way. Somehow, the world slowed again and I batted them back to her. She was able to dodge but barely. She drew her gun. This was it. She fired as Ward cried out for her to stop.

It was like the Matrix. I dodged a freaking bullet.

"Stand down," Fury ordered.

Romanov immediately holstered her gun. "Interesting," she quipped. "Well done."

My eyes were wide. "I can't believe I did that."

Fury strode up. "Believe it. Whatever Holtz used, it worked." He turned to Simmons. "Give her a full workup. Head to toe."

Simmons swallowed. I could tell it was hard for her to think of me as an experiment. "Yes, sir."

Romanov gave me a smile. "I have a feeling I'll be seeing more of you."

()

Back on the bus, I changed out of the tight leather and back into my normal clothes. Ward walked with me to the lab. "That was amazing to watch."

I smiled. "It felt pretty cool. I mean, I went up against the _Black Widow_ and lived!" I had to admit, the newfound powers were giving me a boost out of my funk. It was something to focus on that I could develop.

"Not many people can say that." He took my hand as we walked. "When she pulled her gun I thought Fury was crazy."

"He had to see how far I could be pushed. He had to see the real me."

He nodded. "Yeah. Still trying to separate the Agent you from the girlfriend you."

"Consultant," I corrected.

He chuckled and let me in first to the lab.

My eyes narrowed. Holtz was there with Simmons. In a flash, almost literally, I was there, holding her neck. "You have some nerve showing up here."

She choked a little as I squeezed. "You're… wel.. come…"

I let her go, stepping back. "Let me guess. Fury."

She smiled and rubbed her throat. "Yes indeed. Since solution 42 was a success on you, I'll be documenting with Agent Simmons and then doing a trial run on people from this dimension."

"Your physiology is molecularly the same," Simmons advised, looking nervous around Holtz. "She's hoping for a genetic match on the cellular level."

I crossed my arms. "I'm not letting you take anything from me while she's involved."

"You have to," Holtz countered. "You're property of SHIELD now."

"Like a hippo eating a bumper, I am! I belong to _me_ and that's all."

"That serum inside you is SHIELD property. Therefore, you are our property."

"On a second note, you are not SHIELD."

"Yet here I am." God, I hated that smirk.

"For now." I clinched my fists.

"Is there a problem here?" Coulson emerged, Agent Hill alongside.

"A big one." I turned to him. "I'm refusing experimentation if Holtz is in on it."

Hill crossed her arms. "Holtz designed the Solution 42. Her input is invaluable."

"The bitch kidnapped me, stole my blood and injected me against my will. I'm refusing. Period."

"If you refuse voluntary tests, we'll have to move to involuntary."

"Hill…" Coulson began.

"You know that'll be the call, Coulson," she insisted.

I looked to Coulson. "Phil?"

He looked away. "She's right. Fury will make the call. You'll be restrained, tested, and possibly imprisoned for an indefinite period depending on how much of a danger you present."

My heart sank.

Ward spoke up. "Sir, this is Sita."

He nodded. "I know. But no matter what we say to Fury, no matter what we know deep down to be true, she'll always have Solution 42 in her."

This time I didn't get sad, depressed or hopeless. This time, I got angry. "Then he can win round one." I went to the chair, sitting heavily. "But let me tell you, the game isn't over."

()

While Fury had the world's best interest at heart, I was more pissed at him than ever. But I pushed it aside. There was nothing I could about that at the moment. So instead I would focus on what I _could_ do. May circled me in the training area, thinking. "Even with your new speed, we need to work on the actual maneuvers and make them a part of your muscle memory. To do this, we need to run through them slowly at first."

My determination strengthened my training. I was more focused than every and May was able to utilize our time to its fullest. As we wrapped up, I looked to find Ward sitting on the staircase, watching, his fingers laced in front of him and his familiar game face on.

I grabbed a towel, wiping the sweat from my face and snatched up my water, chugging some before turning to him. "So, what do you think?"

He hesitated, choosing his words. "I think you're training to kill." He sounded sad about that. I was headed down his path and I knew that he was afraid for what that would mean.

I tossed my towel over my shoulder and leaned on the staircase. "Knowing how to kill doesn't make me a killer. It's what I choose to do with that knowledge."

He inhaled deeply, standing. "Sometimes I forget how smart you are." He descended the steps one at a time. "Besides the training, how are you?"

"Miffed. But I'm dealing. I think Holtz knows that she's not going to get away with as much since we know she's an uber-bitch." I glanced over to the lab where she was with Simmons. "I think Jemma's freaked."

He followed my gaze. "I don't blame her."

"So are we stuck here with the Walk?"

He shrugged. "I'm really not sure. Coulson is still over with Fury. After the little scene in the lab, he went straight there."

I felt my heart warm. "He's a good man."

"One of the best."

"If he gets us out on another mission, Holtz can't come. She'll make a break for it."

"Agreed. It'll be the first thing I bring up to him when he comes back."

I turned as the ramp opened. "Here's your chance."

While I was happy to see Coulson return, I was not happy to see Fury beside him. He had his one good eye trained on me. I glanced to Coulson to see him smirking a little. This was a good thing.

"So Coulson tells me you're not happy with our little arrangement." Fury stopped right in front of me as the ramp closed.

"'Arrangement' implies I had some say. I wasn't happy with your demands." I sipped my water and stood my ground. "Agent Simmons can use all of Holtz's notes and take care of it. Then we can lock that little snatchface up where she belongs."

"That's what Coulson has been telling me for the last hour. And I'll tell you what I told him." He crossed his arms defensively. "I think you're unstable. I think you're a liability."

"And I think you overcompensate for some emotional tragedy from your past by imposing your whims on everyone else, claiming it's for the greater good." Crap. Why did they let me open my mouth?

He snorted. "Don't you talk to _me_ about the greater good, Miss Thing. You have a lot to learn before you get to start spouting off like that. Talkin' to me about the greater good like you have a clue what we're in."

"And don't talk to _me_ about not knowing when I have a full track into your world thanks to my connection to the Normverse. Now, put us back in the field and lock Holtz up or get out of my way." I held my breath.

His one eye narrowed at me and I didn't know if he was going to slap me, reach for his gun or order me to a lifetime of more tests.

"You are so lucky I cleared Coulson's team for deployment without Holtz _before_ talking to you." He pointed a finger at me. "Just make sure that mouth of yours is the only thing getting out of line or I'll slap your ass into a lockdown where you get to be Holtz's personal puppet. We clear?"

I nodded. "Crystal."

He turned to Coulson. "Get her a book on manners or something and keep her ass with the team, not out all nimbly bimbly or some shit."

"Yes, sir. No nimbly bimbly." He grinned, the ramp lowering behind him as Fury left.

I waited till the ramp was all the way back up before talking again. "Wow, I really need a muzzle, don't I?"

Coulson just chuckled and shook his head.

Ward put a hand on my back. "I'm afraid if I answered this, it would jeopardize our relationship and I respect you too much."

"Get a shovel, Grant. You're deep in it." I smiled.


	23. Nine to Five

California was a deep contrast to the Canadian blizzard we had been in. This time I was going to be going with Ward and Fitz to consult with Stark about the portal box. Coulson thought that if I was there, telling my story around Stark that it may persuade him to help. Either that or I could totally persuade Pepper to make him help.

Since I was now becoming a more formal member of the team, I opted to bump my wardrobe from casual to business-casual, donning black slacks and a fitted tee with a killer pair of leather boots. Ward was in his suit today and Fitz was... well... Fitz.

Pepper greeted us at the door with a smile. "Agent Ward, I presume?"

He nodded, showing his ID for her. "And this is Agent Fitz with our engineering department, and Sita, a regional consultant."

She moved aside for us. "Please, come in. Agent May said you had a bit more information on that project. Tony is looking forward to it, I'm sure."

I chuckled and came in, gasping at the expanse of the home. "Wow..." I whispered.

She glanced at me. "You're a regional consultant?"

I nodded. "Yeah. From a very interesting region."

()

Stark was in his workshop, tuning up one of his cars, AC/DC blaring over the speakers. I grinned. He at least had good taste.

"Mute," Pepper ordered, silencing the music. "Tony, our guests have arrived."

He looked up from the hood. "Bring me a crescent wrench, will ya?"

I spotted it first and figured we might as well get his attention. I snagged it from across the room and had it to him in less than three seconds. "Here ya go."

He stared. "Now _that's_ a party trick." He took the wrench. "Who are you?"

"Sita. I'm the owner of the portal box."

"Inter-dimensional traveler. Got it." He tightened up something under the hood before shutting it. "I already gave what you needed."

Fitz stumbled forward. "We got the original box. It had been in New Orleans." He dug into his pack and pulled it out.

Stark wiped his hands on a towel, stepping closer to Fitz. "Huh. It is like a Lemarchand's box." He pointed. "Put it there."

Fitz scrambled to do so. I guess Stark's engineering genius would be something Fitz would swoon over. As he set down the box, Jarvis immediately began the scan.

"So you found the box, but no power source remained." He tossed his rag aside and started dissecting the image. "Well, that sucks."

"More than you think," I added.

He looked over at me. "Doesn't mean I can't fix it. But I have plans today. This'll have to wait."

"No." Ward finally spoke.

Stark scoffed. "No? Uh, listen, Agent... Tall Guy. This is my house. These are my toys. And it's my time."

I put a hand on Ward's arm. "It's okay. Just take Fitz and go upstairs for a bit."

He looked down at me, sighed, and drug Fitz out with him.

Pepper came closer, looking at the images of the box. "What is this really about?"

"Tony was right. I'm an inter-dimensional traveler. And that box is what brought me here. I am happy to stay. But the box needs to be fixed for a couple of reasons."

Stark took a seat. "Enlighten me."

"First is that I would like to get at least a message home to let the people who care about me know I'm okay. And second, I need to know how many people would be capable of fixing or creating their own portal box."

He grabbed a bag and popped some of the snack in his mouth. "Why do you need to know that?"

"Because the speed you saw? Not by choice. A doctor by the name of Krysten Holtz is experimenting with inter-dimensional genetics via a labyrinth known as the Walk. Her experimentation has lead to at least fifty people dead and she also confessed to me she plans to take her projects further to include working on infants." I took a deep breath. "That's why I want your help. If this can be reactivated or successfully replicated outside of the Walk, then people like Holtz are going to have free reign to play God."

Pepper looked to Stark. "You have homework." She stepped back over to me. "We'll get it done."

"We?" Stark corrected.

She rolled her eyes. "Let me walk you upstairs."

"Thank you, Miss Potts."

()

Pepper slowed her steps as we got upstairs. "It must be hard for you to be away from home."

I nodded. "It was. It's getting easier, knowing I can help here." I grinned. "And I have Grant."

She smiled. "Grant?"

I glanced out the window to Ward who seemed to be having a debate with Fitz. "Agent Ward."

She raised her eyebrows. "I see," she smiled. "But I have to warn you, dating someone like that comes with its prices."

"Yeah, tell me about it. Every mission we go on, I have to separate myself, or at least try to."

She glanced back at the entrance to the lab. "Watching Iron Man on the news, it stops my heart every time."

"How do you get through it?"

She smiled. "A lot of work. I throw myself in."

()

Sometimes the mundane tasks could keep you sane. I had Ward drop me off at a library and take Fitz back. "I'll be fine alone," I had assured him. He nodded and left me to it.

The library was expansive and I inhaled the scent of the books. I loved it. It was living history in those pages; a documentation of people's thoughts and lives. I meandered through the shelves, letting my fingers glides loosely over the binds while my eyes roamed the various titles. I always seemed to venture to the non-fiction stuff first. I loved to learn.

I stopped, pausing at a book on scrapbooking. It was a simple pleasure I had indulged in back in Normverse. I sat in a chair, opening the book and sighed. All my supplies were at home. All my photos, too.

I took a few ideas from the book and left, heading down the block at a leaisurly pace until I came upon a craft store. With a smile, I began loading my cart with various papers, glues and other supplies, topping it off with a large black scrapbook. I may not have my old memories in print, but I could start some new ones.

"Sita, report your twenty." Ward's voice was annoyed. I had left the library without telling him.

"Hobbies and crafts store." I headed for the checkout counter, my eyes venturing past the bridal magazines. It was crazy, I knew it. But I picked one up, tucking it away after I made my purchases. Ward was outside with the SUV when I walked out with three bags. "Hey."

"What's all that?" He opened the back door for me to set them inside.

"Scrapbooking stuff. I wanted something to do." I made sure that the bridal magazine was hidden and climbed in. "I know that Skye has some pics of us. Maybe I could get more from all of you."

He started the engine, thoughtful. "I never really had a need for a scrapbook. I think it'd be nice."

"Family is family. And I'd like to have this one on record."

()

I stuck the magazine under my bed and brought the rest of the stuff out to a table. Skye picked up a pack of stickers and gave them a once-over. "You really do this stuff?"

I nodded. "Yeah. I'm not going to do a ton if it today. Just want to get everything organized." I pulled out a rolling storage tote. "Putting things in their place is like a natural high for me."

She set the stickers down. "You are a strange on, Sita."

Simmons came in with a bottle of water and a worried look on her face. "Hello Skye, Sita." She sat at the table.

"Jemma, what's wrong?" I asked, starting to file the various papers I had bought.

"I feel like I betrayed you when I agreed to work with Holtz." She looked down at the bottle in her hand. "She did cruel things to you and I let her in our lab."

"Jemma!" I exclaimed, setting things down to hug her. "You did what you had to. And to tell you the truth, it made me feel a little safer to have you there."

She hugged me and sniffled. "I just don't take betrayal lightly."

Skye shifted uncomfortably at that sentence. With good reason.

I smiled to Simmons and motioned. "Here. Help me get all this stuff put into my case."

We dived right in, commenting here and there on different items, just taking time as normal gal pals. It was always a nice reprieve from the onslaught of insanity.

As we finished, Ward came in, walking over to me and giving me a little kiss. "How goes it?"

I smiled. "Done for now. Gonna have to have pictures printed before I can do more."

Coulson followed Ward in, but no kissing. "That'll have to wait until after our next assignment." He held up a folder. "Let's all head to the war room."

()

"This time, we're headed to Mexico," Coulson began as he pulled up images. "Demonstrators marched to demand justice for the killings that took place on October 2, 1968. This is almost an annual event which usually results in rioting. When police riot squads came to defuse the situation, they were surprised to find that they were being retaliated against… by car parts."

"Huh?" I inquired.

He pulled up more images. "Someone caught this video." He hit play and we watched in awe as items dislodged from cars and flung themselves at the police.

"Spontaneous inanimate reanimation?" Fitz worked out loud.

Simmons narrowed her eyes to focus. "It could be a form of anthropomorphism." She slowed the feed down. "No… it doesn't look like it's disconnecting itself."

"What about telekinesis?" I offered.

Skye snorted. "They shoot down things like that and mind reading."

"Telekinesis is different," I educated her. "In everyday experience, intention, such as wanting to turn on a light, is followed by action, such as flicking a light switch, in a reliable way, but the underlying neural mechanisms are outside awareness. Hence though subjects may feel that they directly introspect their own free will, the experience of control is actually inferred from relations between the thought and the action."

Everyone stopped and stared at me.

"Well, what if you made that intention the direct action? Then it would move with the power of your mind." I shrugged. "It's a thought."

Coulson was the first to speak. "Whatever it is, we're headed down there to review the evidence and see if this is an isolated incident."

May headed to the cockpit to lay in the course. Fitz stepped up to me. "Just so you know, if you ever decide to leave Ward, you have the sexiest brain…" he grinned.

Simmons cleared her throat. "Shall we get to work on reconstituting the video data into something more three dimensional?" Her eyes narrowed at Fitz.

He nodded. "Aye, right then." He looked to her with a sheepish grin and followed her to the lab.

Ward and Coulson were still staring at me.

"What?" I looked to see if I had lost my top or something.

"Where did you go to college?" Ward asked.

I shrugged. "Didn't. I was a high school drop out."

Coulson smiled. "A natural at picking things up."

"I thought that homework was beneath me. So I never did it. Aced all my tests but they were mad about me not turning in daily assignments." I took a bow. "I am a testament to the public education system."

Ward smiled and shook his head. "Let's go get strapped in before takeoff."

()

I needed a tan. Bad. So when we landed, I dressed in short denim shorts and a cami. I pulled my hair back and slipped on some sandals and shades. Ward met me on the ramp as it opened. "You wanna get dressed?" he asked.

"Uh, what do you think I'm wearing?"

"Not much…"

"Aw, gee, _Dad_, all the other girls get to wear what they want!" I mocked.

He rolled his eyes and sighed heavily. "You're incorrigible."

I slid the shades over my eyes. "I'm hell-bent on not being covered like a colonial." I strode to the SUV with him and smiled, shaking my booty. FitzSimmons joined us in the back and we headed off to the crime scene. The area was blockaded some, the cleanup crews already at work. Ward parked and hopped out. I followed suit.

Ward held up his badge to a policeman on site. "Buenas tardes. Estamos aquí para ayudarle. Nos dijeron que podíamos mirar a su alrededor."

The officer nodded, motioning. Ward nodded to FitzSimmons and they began their sweep.

I smiled to the officer. "Gracias. Vamos a estar fuera de su pelo pronto." I gave a nod and followed FitzSimmons.

Ward furrowed his brow. "You speak Spanish?"

"A little. Probably not as good as you." I looked around. "Guess that they've already disturbed a lot of this." I kneeled down, picking up a side view mirror. "Looks normal."

Shots rang out, eliciting a yelp from Simmons. She and Fitz hit the ground. Ward drew his gun and crouched. "Get down!"

But I didn't. Instead, I bolted in the direction of the bullets. With my new abilities, I made it behind the shooter in no time. His surprise gave me an advantage and I hit him over the head with the mirror in my hand, knocking him out. "All clear," I advised in my earpiece.

"Think again." I spun around to the voice, a crack of gunfire going off.


	24. Shadows

I gasped and looked down. I wasn't shot. I heard Simmons cry out to Ward. The shooter smiled at me. He was dressed all in camo and wore a mask. "That message was for Ward, not you," he sneered.

"Ward's been hit!" Fitz reported in my ear.

My heart sank and I stared at the gunman. "Who are you?" I may have been fast enough to dodge bullets, but my team wasn't. I didn't try anything else.

"I'm no one to be trifled with. Go tend to the agent. You get to live." He motioned with the gun. "Go."

I took two slow steps before booking it back to Ward. Simmons was pressing down on a wound gushing from his stomach. I paled. "Grant… oh god…" I dropped to my knees beside him.

He was taking shaky breaths. "Just a flesh wound," he tried to assure me.

"An ambulance is on the way," Coulson advised in our ears. "Sita, when they load him up, bring back FitzSimmons to the bus."

"I'm not leaving him." I took Ward's hand, swallowing. "He never left me."

"That's an order." The sirens were approaching.

Ward winced. "Sita, it's okay. I'll be fine."

"Your color is ashen and you're losing blood. I'm. Not. Leaving."

Simmons swallowed thickly, still holding hid wound, his blood all over her. The ambulance pulled up and they loaded him in, severing her from him finally. The blood began flowing and he closed his eyes.

"Grant Ward, you listen to me," I whimpered, following him into the ambulance. "You listen to my voice and you stay with me, you understand, Agent? That's an order."

They closed up the ambulance, working on him as they sped away.

()

When Coulson arrived at the hospital, I was pacing in the waiting area of the ER. Ward's blood was on me. I could still see his face, pale and weak. I knew firsthand what a wound to the stomach could do. Coulson didn't start in on me for not following orders. He simply asked: "Any word?"

I shook my head, stopping my pacing. "Not yet. They rushed him right to an OR."

He took off his suit jacket and put it around my shoulders. "You're shaking."

I tugged it around me. "Thank you. They always keep hospitals cool."

"He'll pull through. Ward's strong."

I nodded a little. "Where are the others?"

"I asked them to stay on the bus." He sat down. "It's just you and me."

"I had that shooter, Phil. I had him right there and he shot Grant. I messed up." I finally sat down next to him. "Did he talk to you when I was in the hospital that time? For those three days?"

"Yeah. He did."

"Was he this scared?"

"Probably. But I'm going to tell you what I told him."

"What's that?"

"To have faith. If the will to live is strong, the body fights harder. And he has something to live for. He's in love with you."

Tears fell. "I was too scared to tell him I love him."

He put an arm around me. "He knows, Sita. He knows and that gives him more fight."

()

I had dosed off against Coulson. He was playing Candy Crush on his phone when I woke. "Hey."

I stretched my neck, popping it. "How long was I out?"

"Couple of hours."

"You sat here the whole time?" I grinned.

"I once had to sit for twelve hours in a bunker. Being the pillow for a friend for a few hours is nothing." He put his phone away. "They came out once. He was being taken to a second surgery." He stood and stretched. "You should go back to the bus. Clean up a little bit."

"I don't know…"

"I'll stay and keep in contact," he assured.

I sighed. "Okay. I'll go take a shower and change but then I'm coming back." I slipped off his jacket and handed it to him. "Thank you."

He nodded and put it back on. "You're welcome." He gave me a reassuring hug. "Bring me back some coffee?"

I smiled. "I can do that. I'll be back." I took the keys and went.

()

The rest of the team was situated near the bar when I came back. It was dead silent, thick with worry. At the sound of my footsteps, the all turned and held their breath. I just shook my head. "No news yet. Coulson sent me to clean up some."

Their shoulders visibly sagged. "He'll pull through," Skye hoped aloud.

I nodded and headed to the showers. The warm water cascaded down my body, rinsing off the blood and making it pool in crimson ribbons down the drain. I sat on my bunk afterwards, letting tears roll down my face. If this was one tenth of what he felt when I was injured, then I could see why he had become so protective of me.

On my nightstand, there was a small piece of paper, folded. Sniffling, I picked it up and read. It was Ward's handwriting. _Remember to ask Coulson to pick up the flowers._ A whole new set of tears fell. He'd wanted to get me flowers.

I tucked the note back where it was and dressed. He was always there for me and I would be there for him.

()

I brought Coulson and myself both some coffee. He had dosed some and I woke him gently. "Hey…"

He inhaled and stretched, opening his eyes. "Hey." He took the coffee with a nod. "Thanks."

"Nothing yet?" I sat beside him.

"Not yet."

As if on cue, a doctor came out. "Agent Coulson?"

We both stood. "Yes?" Coulson replied.

"He's out of surgery. There was a lot of blood loss. The bullet had nicked the spleen. We had to replace almost five units."

I gripped Coulson's arm.

The doctor continued. "We've taken him out of anesthesia but he hasn't woken yet. If he wakes within the next few hours, he'll have a good chance."

"If he doesn't?" I whispered.

"Then there might have been blood loss to the brain for too long and it may be too late."

Coulson nodded. "Can we see him?"

()

Coulson had to hold me up when I saw Ward lying on that hospital bed, tubes and monitors all around. I was horrified and almost passed out right there. HIs color had returned but that was all. His lifeless form was pushing oxygen in and out but that may have been the machines. I pulled up a chair to the side of his bed and took his warm hand. "Grant?" I croaked out. "Baby, I'm here." It was hard to talk through the sob that threatened its way up.

Coulson put a reassuring hand on my shoulder, giving it a squeeze.

I glanced up to the monitors, scanning them. His blood pressure was normal, pulse oxygenation was within reason. "Vitals look good."

"Sita..." Coulson sighed. He knew what I was doing. I was trying to focus on science and things that I could control or reason with.

I swallowed. "Just let me," I begged. I didn't want to think of what could happen.

He gave my shoulder another squeeze and left me there.

I wasn't one for praying. I had been raised self-reliant, believing that the gods only help those who help themselves. When I did pray, it was to have a bit of guidance on a matter. I never prayed for miracles.

Until now.

My voice was a whisper. "I beg of you. This man is pure of heart and true in spirit. His time hasn't come." I closed my eyes. "Let him come back to me."

I opened my eyes but there was no bright flash of light or phenomenal choir singing his return. I wiped at my eyes and laid my head down on his hand.

()

Emotionally exhausted, I had fallen asleep. My dreams were vacant this time, a small blessing. I woke gently, someone caressing my hair. Opening my eyes, I gasped. "Grant!"

He was sitting up, ventilator removed, and breathing on his own. "Hey, pretty."

I let out a sob and kissed his hand. "You're awake!"

He smiled. "Yeah. Told you it was just a flesh wound."

I let out a relieved laugh. "Sorry I didn't believe you."

()

Against doctor's orders, Ward demanded to be released as soon as he was able to walk. "I'll heal on the plane," he'd advised. I didn't care. He was going to be back. With me.

Everyone was relieved when we made it back to the bus. Ward flopped onto a couch with a heavy sigh. "So did we get any leads on the flying parts?"

I sat beside him. "No idea. That's FitzSimmons territory." I ran my fingers through his hair, taking in the sight of him alive. "I was a mess."

He closed his eyes and leaned his head back, letting me play with his hair. "You didn't have to be. I knew I'd be okay."

"Yeah, because gunshots to the stomach are always just minor." I rolled my eyes. "The shooter got away. He told me that the shot was a message for you. He knew you by name."

That caught his attention. He sat up a little straighter. "What did he look like?"

I shook my head. "No idea. He had a mask on and was dressed completely in camouflage."

"There aren't many people who would target me by name. I'm used to people targeting SHIELD but personal attacks? Not the norm."

"I think it's the same party responsible for the attack on the police. Like it was an act to bring out this team."

"Then we need to find out more." He started to stand, but I put a hand on his arm.

"We'll relay the information to Coulson. He can have Skye check data streams. You need to take it easy."

He stayed sitting but I could tell he wasn't happy about it. "I'm not useless."

"I know that. But it doesn't mean you should push yourself until you are."

()

Coulson gathered us all in the lab for a consultation. "There's been another incident." He pulled up new video footage. This time it took place in a rural farming community. This time the farm equipment attacked the farmers.

"This isn't anthropomorphism," I offered. "Whatever it is, they're using the items as weapons."

"Sita, you and May will take FitzSimmons to go check out the fresh site." Coulson handed me a gun. "I think you're ready to carry."

Ward shifted on his feet. "Sir…"

Coulson looked to May. "Your call." May nodded her approval. I was now armed.


	25. Swap

Note: Lyrics from _~I like it, I love it~_ by Lyrics Born

"Sleepy found something!" Simmons announced happily.

I strode over to the tiny bot and knelt down. "What am I looking at?"

"Er, the uh, the trowel. It has remnant energy signatures." Fitz came over to pack the trowel away.

I went back over to May, feeling a bit like a third wheel. "What am I doing here again?"

"You're providing support and security." May kept her eyes on FitzSimmons.

"Ward's old job," I muttered. The Sig Sauer weighed heavily on my right hip. Fitting metaphor for my thoughts. Ward was healing and resting. Simmons had given him some protein injection to help with muscle repair. He was in deep conversation with Coulson about the shooter.

Fitz came over to me. "Okay, even I can tell you're miles away."

I grinned. "Sharp one, aren't you?"

"I try." He clicked a few things on his screen. "Ward is going to be fine. Simmons' protein shots are like magic. And by magic, I mean extraordinary biochemical genius."

"When are you going to ask her out?"

His eyes about popped out of his head. "Pardon?"

I smiled. "Leo, we all know. And you both could benefit from a little stress relief, if you get my drift."

Blush crept up into his cheeks. "I… have no idea what you're talking about."

"She wants you, too." I knelt down to look at some tracks.

"She… she does?"

My eyes narrowed. "These tracks aren't from the farmer's trucks." I stood. "May! Got something!"

()

"The tracks broke suddenly about a mile later." I pointed out on the screen in the war room. "Like it lifted off."

Fitz nodded. "We're looking at something with possible aerial capabilities."

Coulson nodded along. "And the farm implements?"

Simmons brought up another image. "The trowel we scanned showed residual kinetic energy with traces of gamma."

"Gamma?" Ward repeated with concern.

Fitz nodded. "We're thinking that Mexico is a test."

"Since it's putting out gamma, can we track it?" Ward asked.

"Yes. We're inputting a trace into the satellite feed as we speak. We should have a location soon."

()

Ward laid back as I pulled out some gauze to change his bandage. "There's no seepage so that's good." I cleaned the wound gently. "No sign of infection, no redness, no swelling of tissue."

"Simmons really is a genius," he mused.

I redressed the wound. "There you go, Agent." I gathered up the used supplies for disposal.

He sat up slowly. "Agent?" He studied my face. "You okay?"

"Yeah, just thinking about that shooter." I sighed.

"Coulson and I are looking through a list of targets that knew my name." He took my hand. "Sita, we're the best for a reason."

"I'm starting to get that." I kissed him softly. "I love you, Grant."

His eyes brightened. "I know." He touched my face. "I love you, too."

"I'm just sorry it took you almost dying for me to say it." I felt tears welling up.

"Hey…" He kissed me softly. "I know what it's like to be afraid of love. But I knew. You show your love every day. That's why I never pressed you to say it."

I grinned and turned to lock the door. "I'd like to show it right now." I kissed him. "I just have to remember to take it easy on you."

()

Curled up to Ward's side, I lazily traced out patters on his chest as he held me close. This was the perfect moment. We were in young and in love. I sighed contently. "This is nice."

"Mm-hmm," he agreed, rubbing my arm. "I should get injured more often if that's the prescription for healing."

"Well, Jemma had a hang nail and when I did this for her, she healed right up," I joked.

He paused. "Please tell me that really happened."

I laughed. "Oh, sure. Jemma and I are totally doing it daily."

He laughed with me. "Hey, a guy can dream."

I sat up slowly, groaning. "Ugh. Back to the grind." I pulled on my jeans with a sigh.

"Be careful out there, okay?" He sat up, too. "You're getting stronger, I know, but you're still flesh and blood. And I'd like to have you around for a while."

I smiled and put on my t-shirt. "That's a step, Agent Ward. You didn't forbid me from going."

"I can grow." He shrugged. "Contrary to popular belief, I am _not_ a robot."

()

Simmons tied a tourniquet on my arm. "Sorry," she apologized as I winced.

"No problem." I shrugged. "At least it's not Holtz."

She smiled. "True." Carefully, she slid the needle into my vein. I didn't flinch. "You're one of the only ones who can actually look while I do this," she commented.

"I was sick a lot one year. I ended up having four surgeries. Lots of needles. I kinda got used to it."

She stuck the first vacuum vile in, my blood rushing out. "I will say, your tests have been promising so far. Today I'm going to check about cell regeneration. The solution she gave you may have done more than just increase your speed and agility."

"Super human healing would be nice."

She pressed a cotton ball to my arm as she withdrew the needle and undid the tourniquet. "If it did improve your regeneration, Holtz may have been right. You may be a key to curing illness."

I held the cotton ball as she labeled the vials. "No pressure."

"Oh! That's not what I… I mean, you… Er…"

I chuckled. "Way with words, Doctor."

She grinned and set a vial into her centrifuge. "Working in the laboratories at SHIELD was very different. They would just bring me all the samples I needed. I didn't go out into the field to collect them."

"Do you miss that? Being in the safety of the labs at SHIELD?"

She thought. "No. Because here is where the real help is needed."

()

May circled around me. "You may be fast, but you're not as skilled." She pinned me down before I knew it. "You're losing focus."

I got back up. "I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize. Fix it." She circled again, this time I was able to dodge. "Better. Now hit me."

"Hit you?" My eyes widened.

"If you can."

I pulled back, throwing a punch which she actually anticipated. With my newfound speed, a just brushed her hair. She was right. Speed wasn't the defining factor. Skill was. After an hour, I landed a punch.

May took it, giving a grin. "Very good. I think that's all for today." He began unwrapping her hands. "I'm impressed with the progress."

I beamed with pride. "I have a good teacher."

()

Fitz was on edge. I watched him working in the lab and saw him glance nervously at Simmons now and then. Perhaps I shouldn't have been so forward with my observations about them. I went to stand next to him, whispering: "Hey."

He glanced over. "Hey."

"You okay?"

"Me? Fantastic."

"You're skittish. I'm thinking because you're trying to find an ice breaker with Jemma."

He dropped the tool he was using. "Shh!"

"Leo Fitz, you are an adorable, smart and cute man. Just ask her out. This is Mexico. Go take her for margaritas." I slapped his back. "Maybe you just need a nudge."

His eyes widened. "What're you thinkin' of doin'?"

I cleared my throat. "Why yes, I _do_ think Jemma's blouse is lovely!" I stated loudly.

She turned. "Pardon?"

"Fitz was just saying how that color brings out your eyes," I flippantly commented as I walked out of the lab to leave them alone.

()

With energy to spend, I cranked up a radio in the bay and proceeded to dance/box with the punching bag. Music always transported me to a party in my mind. This was no exception.

_~Every time I get up on the microphone, I gotta dedicate a rhyme to ya girl, c'mon~_

I alternated swinging my hips and swinging my fists.

_~I don't care where you're from. The first time I saw you girl, you had me sprung.~_

This is how it should have been during a real fight. If I had a soundtrack going I could totally bust it out. Everything perfectly time. Sway, kick, sway, punch, punch.

"Is it wrong that this is hotter than porn for me?"

Ward's voice threw me off and I landed on my ass. "Grant! Pickles and eggnog, dude." I hopped up, turning the music down. "Thought you were asleep."

"I was." He came down the stairs, favoring his side. "Woke up a bit ago. Thought I'd do some work. Then I heard the music and came down."

_~Girl you look so good wanna drive it on home like a nail through wood~_

I cut the song. "I thought I'd get some extra cardio in while FitzSimmons tried to get a pinpoint on that aerial signal." Snatching up a towel, I dabbed sweat from my face and neck.

"I didn't know you could dance like that."

I sipped some water. "Never had the chance to." I glanced over at him. "Dude, you're looking at me like a piece of meat."

He shook himself. "Sorry. You're just… in the tight workout clothes… moving around like that…"

I kissed him softly. "Thank you."

Coulson came down in a hurry. "Skye got a hit on a name."

Ward came to attention. "Who?"

"George Tarleton."

"Shit." Ward pinched the bridge of his nose, annoyed.

"Care to fill me in?" I asked.

Coulson handed me a file. "Ward was responsible for obtaining tech related to a project called M.O.D.O.K. Tarleton was a technician on that project and lost a lot when the tech was taken."

"How does he know Ward by name?" I flipped through the file.

"Er, well, I was undercover for a while on that mission and… kind of slept with his girlfriend."

"Speaking of, Katherine Waynesboro is missing, too," Coulson added.

"Looks like Tarleton found a way to complete his tech anyway." I closed the file. "How do we find him?"

"Whoa, if he got the tech working and has telekinetic abilities, this just got brought to a whole new level," Ward argued.

"And we have a new level of agent on this plane," Coulson looked to me.

I nodded. "We get it done. That's what we do."


	26. Other Side of the Coin

It was nice to have this side mission. It took attention away from this freak-of-the-week portal jumper. Things were in a routine now. And I was a part of the team. I was completing missions and training with my SO. Everything was as normal as could be.

This meant, of course, that something _had_ to be going wrong soon.

I pulled Skye aside. "Hey, I need to know what's going on with the Walk in Canada. Think you can help?"

She inhaled deeply. "I don't want to get in trouble with Coulson."

"I'll handle Coulson. Hell, I'll handle Fury if I have to."

She grinned. "Okay then." She snatched up her laptop and we headed to the war room.

I turned on the imaging table. "I'm interested in Eric. They kept Holtz on their payroll but I didn't hear anything about him."

She began typing away, back in her element. "Can do." Images appeared on the table, including their file on Eric. "Here we are…"

I touched one of the images to enlarge it. It was a document showing he had been placed back in California under some form of probation period. "Son of a…" I took a deep breath. "Basically, he's got a bracelet like yours. They let him go."

Coulson charged in, not looking happy. "What's going on in here?"

Skye froze.

I put my hands on my hips. "She just did me a favor. Unlike SHIELD." I pointed. "You know, aside from this team, I sometimes wonder if SHIELD knows its head from a hole in the ground."

He took a glance at the document. "Eric Williams is not our priority. We need to know how far the MODOK project really developed."

"Eric Williams still has connections to HYDRA and who knows who else!"

"Which is why he's being watched." Coulson crossed his arms. "It's not our assignment."

"Our assignment was to identify the cause of the retaliating magical flying items. We did that."

"And Stark is working on the portal box. What exactly do you want us to do, Sita?" His tone was not happy. I was crossing that line. I was not in charge and here I was, trying to push what I wanted.

"I…"

He waited.

I didn't know. Was it that I was just drawn to the Walk and the portals? Was there something that made me seek out only things consisting of that? If that was the case, that might have been where I belonged.

But Coulson was right, his team had an assignment.

"I want to close the chapter on Holtz and Williams."

"That ending isn't yours to decide."

Skye slowly closed her laptop, obviously uncomfortable at the tension.

"But it's the right choice," I pressed.

"It's not your call. This is the final discussion. We capture and bring in Tarleton and then move on from there. Until then, stay out of the databases." He looked at Skye. "Both of you." Pivoting, he left without waiting for any retort.

()

Ward closed his book when I came into our room, slamming the door as much as I could. "Problem?" he guessed.

I plopped down beside him and gave him the shorthand of what happened. "I know he's right. I shouldn't have mouthed off."

"But you know what Holtz was planning and you don't like it." He paused. "And you still want a way home."

"Grant…"

"No, I get that. You have loved ones there, too." He set his book aside.

"Holtz's experiments are a higher concern." I didn't want to admit he was right. I was really getting homesick. I wanted to talk to my friends about all this and I wanted to know how they were doing. Did Tammi get a new job? How were Ginger's kids? Those types of things didn't matter here. Because those people didn't exist.

"You were looking forward to this assignment to get away from the Walk and now you want to go back?" He shook his head. "You can't have it all."

"That's one thing I've figured out." I picked a piece of fuzz off my shirt. "I'm used to closing circles. I follow through something to the end."

"So why did you press for an assignment outside of the Walk?"

"I don't know, okay?" I snapped, getting up. "I'm batcrap crazy and I know it. I get lost after a while and I can't find my way. So I get angry, confused and eventually, I shut down! Is that what you want to know?"

His eyes went wide. "Whoa… slow down… That's not where I was headed."

I was breathing heavy, flustered. I hated being in the wrong and I knew that I was. I tended to lash out when that happened and I knew it. "I know. I know that you didn't mean anything." I balled up my fists. "I just don't like it when I'm not in control of everything. I'm a bit of a control freak."

He nodded. "Yeah, we've seen that."

My eyes narrowed. "Oh really?"

He raised his hands in defense. "Just saying…"

I sighed. "I just don't know where to go from here."

He pulled me back down to him on the bed. "You do this mission and then you take it from there."

"I don't even really know what I'm supposed to do on this mission."

"It's a capture and contain mission. Once we have him, he'll be shipped to an undisclosed location for interrogations and such."

"You should be doing this mission."

"I would. But I have another week before I'd be ready."

"A week? I took more than that off. You should wait at least three."

He shook his head. "My wound wasn't as destructive as yours. I'll be fine."

I closed my eyes. "I'm going to try and trust you on that."

"You have to learn to let go of all that worry. I'm a SHIELD agent. This is how it's going to be."

My eyes opened. "You can't tell me how to feel, Grant. It doesn't work like a switch."

He went silent. I was laying into him and I knew it. But I was just so confused and frustrated. It was hard to know what the right path was anymore.

"Let's get something to eat," I suggested after a bit.

He nodded. As he stood from the bed, he knocked off his book. "Oops." Bending to pick it up, he stopped and tugged at the corner of something sticking out from under the bed…

"Wait!" Too late. He was staring at the bridal magazine I had bought.

"What's this?" He went a little pale.

I snatched it and shoved it back under the bed. "Nothing. Let's just go eat."

He started to speak again but I went to the kitchen.

()

They'd gotten a lock on the aerial unit. I was geared up with a mini night-night gun and cuffs. I wasn't going to be alone though. May was coming along.

I swallowed thickly as we got into the SUV. "You really think I'm ready for this? He got the drop on me before."

"Which is why you'll be looking for that this time." She pulled out, heading down a dirt road. "Just get behind him before he can do anything, knock him out, and cuff him. Simple snatch and grab."

We parked a mile from the site. May had a GPS link on her watch to guide us the rest of the way on foot. I tried to keep my mind focused, keep my eyes open for anything out of the ordinary.

It looked like what might have once been an old bottling plant. May and I circled to the back, watching as two harmless guards played cards, their assault rifles propped up against the wall.

May slipped down, taking them both out quietly before signally for me to come on. She made some hand signal and I looked at her like she was speaking Greek. She sighed heavily. "Follow my lead." Going on in, we both gasped as a white light flashed before us.

()

"May?" Someone was speaking to my SO, trying to wake her up. Sounded like Coulson. I opened my eyes to find him peering down at me. "May, can you hear me?"

"What?" I asked, stopping as I realized my voice didn't come out of my mouth.

"Sita's still out. What happened?"

"What do you mean 'Sita's still out?' I'm right here." I sat up, holding my head. "Ow…" As things came into focus, I saw my body lying on another bed. "What the?"

"Sita?" Coulson looked confused.

I looked to the side and gasped at my reflection in the glass. May's shocked face was looking back at me. "Holy crapballs."

"That's Sita, alright," Ward confirmed.

My body groaned, sitting up as well. "Coulson?" May asked from my body, pausing when she heard my voice. "What's going on?"

()

FitzSimmons were having a field day in the lab with May and I, trying to figure out the body switch. Coulson and Skye had started to dig through whatever connections they could. Ward watched FitzSimmons working on us, his face completely blank.

"I have to use the restroom," I advised squeamishly. "I, uh…" I so didn't want to see May's naked body. "Well, I guess I can wait."

"Go on," May said. Her annoyed look on my face was so confusing. "We both have girl parts."

I hopped up. This body was stronger, toned to battle. It was still really weird to get used to. I finished my business in the bathroom, Ward stopping me before I headed back to the lab. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm not hurt or anything." I had to look up a little bit more to meet his eyes.

"This is…" He shook his head. "I still can't get my head around it."

"Baby…" I touched his arm, leaning in to kiss him and stopped as he pulled back. "Right. Sorry."

"Guess I'm sleeping alone tonight."

I chuckled. "Well, you could ask May if she was up to helping you sleep while she's in my body?"

"Er, no."

I chuckled. "Fair enough."

"Whoa… May can smile…"

()

When I made it back to the lab, May was holding a bucket, her/my face green. "What happened?" I asked, concerned.

"She's sick. Getting used to your speed I think," Simmons explained.

May looked up at me with my blue eyes. "How do you not throw up all the time?"

I was puzzled. "I don't ever feel nauseated."

"It's your body." May narrowed my eyes. Did I really scowl like that? Geez.

"Well, it's almost midnight. My body needs sleep." I looked to Ward. "Wanna do our nighttime ritual?" I teased.

Both Ward and May/Me glared at me.

()

Sleeping in another person's body is so weird. The next morning, I dressed in May's clothes and went to the kitchen. Ward was eating a bowl of oatmeal, looking baggy eyed and sleepy. "Honey, did you sleep at all?"

He shook his head. "No, and can you not call me that while you're… her?"

I took a step back. "Sorry."

He kept his eyes on the bowl.

"Grant, it's still me." My heart hurt some.

"I know. But… it's not. I can't kiss you, hold you, wake up with you in my arms…" He pushed his oatmeal away."

I sat down. "I'm sorry. Did you talk to May? I mean, I'm sure you could hold… her?"

He gave me a look like "you gotta be kidding."

"I'm serious. It'll be like holding me. It'll help you sleep." I picked up a banana, peeling.

"I don't know…"

"What's the worst-"

"Don't. Say. It." He pointed a spoon at me.

()

The trigger device was found at the now abandoned building. Fitz advised that he could have it repaired… in 24 hours. "Simmons and I have to map out algorithms for both of you. We want to make sure that we put you back completely."

We decided to have movie night for everyone else. We gathered on the plush white furniture, May and I flanking Ward on either side, a popcorn bowl in his lap. Coulson and Skye took chairs nearby. May closed my eyes, taking the opportunity to nap some.

Gotta admit, whoever picked out the romantic comedy should have been shot. We all dozed off in no time.

And woke to Ward crying out in pain as May/Me pinned his arm behind his back on the floor. "Ow! Ow! Ow!"

I stood fast. "May!"

She released him. "Reflex. And with super speed."

He rubbed his shoulder. "I was half asleep! I didn't know!"

"Didn't know what?" Coulson asked.

"He forgot I was in Sita's body." She crossed her arms.

I tried not to laugh. "And what did he do?"

"Nothing!" he protested.

"He felt me up," May corrected.

"I felt _her_ up! It… I…" He stammered as he sat back on the couch. "One more night. I can handle this."

()

The next morning, FitzSimmons was able to switch us back. We were going to have to take the device to a SHIELD headquarters in New York to be sealed up.

Simmons pulled me aside. "Are you feeling sick to your stomach?"

I shook my head. "No. It's tender but I think that's from May hurling."

She nodded and looked thoughtful. "Okay, well, I suppose that's that then."

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing. Just wondering why she was so ill for a bit there."

I headed back to Ward's room and shut the door, trying to make a May face. "We have one more hour till they're ready."

He glanced up from his book. "An hour?" He shut his book. "Then this is the last chance for us to explore our forbidden love."

I sighed. "May already told you."

He smiled. "Yeah. Saw her when I went to grab water." He pulled me to him and kissed me hard, letting me know how hard two days apart affected him.

Breaking the kiss, I panted. "And hello…"


	27. Bloodline

"So had you seen anything like this before?" I asked FitzSimmons about the body switcher.

"In theory," Fitz nodded. "There were a few professors talking about it."

"The last bits of the puzzle were there in that." Simmons pointed to the large device. It was shaped like a sphere, about two feet in diameter.

"This thing would be kinda handy." I knew enough not to pick it up, though. Made that mistake once before.

"Handy?" Fitz inquired.

I nodded. "Let's say that we needed Ward's brain, but my speed. Pop him into me and pow! Super Agent."

Fitz perked up. "Or we could put our mind in a monkey!"

Simmons sighed with exasperation. "Fitz! We are _not_ getting a monkey!"

()

Even though I was back to me, Ward had been keeping some distance after our "back in my body" sex. He'd have "training" to do, or reports to go over. More than usual. I slipped into the SUV with Skye. She was getting used to my barging in. "Hey."

"Hey there, sister from another mister." She closed her laptop. "What's up?""

"Has Ward being acting different lately?"

She shrugged. "He's up my training sessions to twice a day. That's about it."

"Has he said anything about me?"

"He doesn't even say anything about _him_. What's going on?"

I picked at the chipping nail polish on my hands. I'd have to get with Simmons for a touch up. "He's just getting distant."

"He's almost healed up from his wound. I bet it's just that he was all upset about the bedrest crap. You know him, Mr. One Man Army."

I nodded. "Yeah, you're right."

()

Pfft. She wasn't right. Something was up. But I didn't trust her as much as I did Simmons. Before dinner, I pulled her into my bunk, happy for the soundproofing. "Jemma, I messed up and freaked out Grant."

She sat down. "What?"

I pulled out the magazine. "He found this."

Her eyes widened. "When did you get that?" She snatched it up and started flipping through it. "Oh, look at this Donna Karen dress..."

I snatched it back. "Focus!"

She shook herself. "Sorry, right then. He found that? Oh, that's not good."

"I was just looking! I didn't buy it because I thought he was proposing! It's a girl thing!"

She nodded along to my panic. "Did you talk to him about it?"

"I just told him it was nothing and changed the subject." I sat beside her. "Do you think I scared him off?"

She took my hands. "Sita, listen, he's in love with you. A bridal magazine isn't going to change that. What _will_ change it is if you don't talk to him." She gave me a reassuring smile. "And besides, I already saw what my bridesmaid dress should be for the wedding. So you can't break up."

()

I couldn't eat at dinner. Partially because it was stuffed peppers and I hated those. The other part was nerves. I just grabbed a book and went to my room. I'd finished a full chapter before Ward came in. "You okay?" he asked.

I nodded. "Yeah. Not hungry." I kept my eyes on the book. I still wasn't sure how to talk to him.

The bed shifted under his weight as he sat. "Do you think you've come down with something? May was feeling sick when she was in your body."

I shrugged. "It'll pass. Whatever it is."

"What did I do now?" he grumbled.

I looked up from the book. "You've been distance so I thought you wanted space."

He sighed. "I'm not meaning to be distant."

"Is this because of the magazine? Because I just bought that for the fun of it. It wasn't meant to pressure you. That's why I hid it."

"I know. I realized that. But that didn't stop me from thinking about what you'd eventually want. And I never thought about marrying anyone. I'm a SHIELD agent. I'm not a nine-to-five average Joe who can take care of a wife and family. So yeah, it freaked me a little and I've been trying to take time to think rather than say something that makes you think I don't want to be with you."

"I can respect that." I put the book aside, hugging him. "You just have to talk to me. That's all. It's okay to have concerns. Just don't try and slam them in my face and tell me we shouldn't be together."

He held me, rubbing my back. "We'll take it a day at a time then."

"That sounds like a plan." I grinned then felt my stomach turn. I really had caught something. I jumped up and ran to the bathroom, retching hard on an empty stomach. Ward was right behind me, holing my hair back and simultaneously dampening a cool washcloth for me. When I finished, I flushed and stayed sitting on the floor, my back against the wall.

He held the cool rag to my forehead. "Better?"

I closed my eyes. "Yes, thank you."

"I think Simmons has some anti-nausea meds. I'll grab you some. Think we might have some of that heat up flu medicine too." He took my hand and put it up to hold the rag. "Wait here."

He was getting no argument there. I stayed with the cool rag to my head. No one else on the bus was sick. Was my immune system compromised by the speed serum? Was this stomach upset a side effect?

He brought both the medicine and Simmons back with him. She had a thermometer with her. "Let's make sure you're not running a fever." She ran it over my temples. "Normal. That's a good sign. Perhaps this is just something you ate or a small side effect from the serum."

"Small? Ugh. I hate puking." I held out my hand to Ward who helped me stand. "Will the meds still work?"

She sifted through what he had on him. "This one." She handed a bottle to me. "It dissolves under the tongue. If that doesn't work, we'll have to try suppositories."

"Uh, it'll work."

()

And it did. I was able to fall asleep in Ward's arms peacefully and wake up the next morning feeling much better. Ward was sleeping soundly, snoring just a little bit as he lay beside me. Quietly, I slipped out of bed and put on some yoga pants and a tee. No need to wake sleeping bears. Shutting the door behind me, I smiled. It was hard not to when he was so freaking adorable.

"Sita?" Simmons voice was timid.

"Hey, Jemma. What's up?"

"We... we need to talk." She wrung her hands together.

"Uh-oh." I followed her to the lab. Fitz made himself scarce when we entered. This was not good. "Jemma, what's going on?"

"I found out why you were sick." She bit her lip. "You're kind of... a little... pregnant."

I had to pick my jaw up off the floor. "Shit." I had told Coulson I would need to be more careful but I didn't listen to myself. We hadn't used any form of birth control at all.

"Are you okay?"

I nodded. "Yeah." I took a deep breath, exhaling slowly. "Wow. Okay. Well..." I sat down. "Oh man. For real?"

She nodded. "Yes."

My look turned to one of panic. "What about the injection? Do you think it'll harm the baby?"

She gave a worried shrug. "I don't know. We'll just have to keep monitoring."

I held my stomach, thoughts racing through my head. "Please keep this to yourself until I can talk this out with Grant."

"Of course!" She gave me a hug. "I'm here for you."

()

I made Ward French toast and bacon, taking it to our room. He awoke to the smell, smiling. "Breakfast in bed?" He sat up. "What's the occasion?"

I sat the tray in his lap, sitting myself on the edge of the bed. "I'm going to wait until you eat some."

His brow creased. "Okay, now I'm not going to eat until you tell me."

I closed my eyes. "I'm pregnant."

He was absolutely still. I didn't even know if he was breathing. And he sat like that for a good solid five minutes.

I swallowed as I opened my eyes. "Grant?"

"Pregnant? How...?"

I rolled my eyes. "You know exactly 'how' it happened."

"I meant how do you know?"

"Jemma. Blood work came back."

He ran his fingers through his hair. "Wow..."

"That's what I said." I snatched a piece of his bacon. "I asked her if the injection from Holtz would have any effects and she's not sure. We're just going to have to keep an eye on me." I hesitated. "If we decide I should have it."

His eyes snapped to mine. "What does that mean?"

"Well, do you want a baby? And with the possibilities of experimentation because of who I am... I don't know. That's why I wanted to talk with you."

He set the food aside and took my hands. "I will support you. I know this is scary. It is for me, too. The thought of bringing up a child in this... well, it's a hard thought. But at the same time, it's a baby. Ours." He sighed. "I don't know."

"How are we going to break this to Coulson?"

He winced. "That's going to be the hardest part of all."

()

Cupcakes. That had to be the answer. I baked a full batch of red velvet cupcakes with cream cheese frosting and set two on a tray with a cup of hot coffee, ascending the stairs to Coulson's office with Ward.

He stopped at the door. "You sure this will work?"

"Nope." I knocked at the door.

"Come in," Coulson chimed.

I put on my brightest smile and entered, setting the tray on his desk. "Thought you might like a treat!" I beamed.

He looked at the tray with a smile, and then it slowly faded. "What did you do?"

"Huh?"

"You're sucking up."

Ward grinned. He'd told me this would happen.

"Oh, Phil..." I chuckled, Ward and I taking a seat. "What makes you think I did something? Maybe I just want to do something nice for my team leader?"

He poked at a cupcake. "Are they laced?"

"Damn, that would have been easier." I sighed. "Okay, straight to the point." I pressed my lips together, gathering courage. "I'm pregnant."

He nodded. "I know."

"I'm sorry that… Wait, you know?"

He took a bite of cupcake. "You've got morning sickness. And your physical features have been changing. I can put two and two together." He held up the cupcake. "These are good."

"You're not mad?"

He sipped his coffee. "No. A little disappointed."

"Are we allowed to keep it?"

He almost choked. "Allowed? Sita, I can't make you give up your child."

I visibly relaxed. "I was afraid that being an active consultant would mean that I couldn't be here and be pregnant. You know, liabilities."

"I'm not going to lie. This is going to change things. You're off the active list. You're not allowed on any missions outside the bus. And you may not even be allowed to travel after a while."

Now for the big point. "Is SHIELD going to want to experiment on my baby?"

"Not if they think you lost it."

"Sir?" Ward sat up.

"Skye can forge records. We can keep Sita's child under a fake file so that Simmons can still monitor everything." He folded his hands on the desk. "I know your fear of Holtz. I'm going to do what I can to make sure she never touches your child."


	28. Fast Track

As we landed in New York, the entire team was told of my situation and of what Coulson planned to do to keep me safe. "Skye, I need you to make up a fake file for Emma Roseward. We're talking bypass on the federal social security files, DMV's, everything. We need to make this woman exist." Coulson scanned the room with his eyes. "All of you, you are to keep this secret with your lives. If it's one thing we do, it's protect what needs to be protected."

()

Coulson left with FitzSimmons to secure the mind swap sphere at HQ. We were restocking food and meds. And I was really starting to realize I was having a baby with a freaking Agent of SHIELD. I sat heavily on a couch in the middle of looking through a box of supplies.

Ward rushed over. "You okay?"

I nodded numbly, in shock.

He brought me some water. "You sure? You're a little pale."

I took the water and sipped it. "Just realizing that… I'm pregnant."

He sat down beside me. "Yeah. You really are. We're going to be parents."

Skye slammed a box down nearby. "Here. More clothes." She stormed back to her bunk.

"What's her problem?" Ward asked.

"Orphan. I bet seeing us doing all this for our baby is kinda hitting a nerve." I felt bad. I had completely intruded in her new family.

He kissed my forehead. "Hey, it's okay. You didn't do anything wrong."

I sighed. "I know. But I don't want to rub it in her face, either." I put a hand to my stomach. "Are you hoping for a boy or girl?"

"Boy," he nodded without hesitation.

"Oh? How come?"

"I don't know the first thing about raising a girl." He smiled.

I laughed. "That I believe wholeheartedly."

()

Simmons finished collecting my latest blood samples and handed me a cotton ball from the tiny bleed. "Have you had more morning sickness?"

"Some. Not bad." I held the cotton to my arm.

"The preliminary tests on your blood did show advanced healing. This may mean that pregnancy issues may be reduced. I'm not sure." She labeled her samples.

"That would be sweeter than sugar on a honey popsicle." I stood, ditching the cotton. Something felt different. "Jemma? When am I supposed to feel the baby move?"

"About 16-25 weeks. And you're at about five."

I lifted my tee, gasping at the small baby bump. "Jemma…"

She turned and looked, gasping. "Oh…"

"I can feel him moving."

She sat me back down, grabbing a few devices and sticking one to my stomach. "This is impossible." She clicked on her tablet, eyes wide as she flipped through things. "The pregnancy has accelerated since my tests yesterday."

"Accelerated?"

"You're at about twenty weeks."

()

I was sobbing and shoveling Fitz's pudding in my mouth. This may have been a mood swing. Not going to count that out. Ward approached cautiously. "Sita?"

I looked up at him, holding a spoonful of pudding in mid-air. "Yeah?"

"Simmons told me what's going on. Do you want to talk?"

I let the spoon fall back in the pudding. "Do I want to talk? _Talk?_ About what? The fact that I'm pregnant and oh, the baby is growing fast and may be all messed up or super powered or who knows what and I have to just sit here and let it happen because I can't do a damn thing but be an incubator!" My voice kept getting louder and louder.

He took a step back. "I…"

"_You_ did this to me!" I covered my face with my hands and sobbed.

Coulson rushed down at the raised voices. "What's going on?"

Ward was lost. "I'm not sure."

"I'm carrying a freak baby!" I sobbed loudly.

Coulson furrowed his brow in thought. "Mood swings?"

The tears instantly dried, replaced with rage. "Oh, so if I have emotions, it _has_ to be mood swings? Couldn't be that I just needed a hug? Huh? Huh?"

Ward attempted to step closer. "Well, this isn't really huggable."

"I'm not _huggable?_" There came the tears.

"No! That's not…" Taking a deep breath, Ward rushed over to hug me.

I batted at him. "Don't hug me out of pity!"

Coulson rubbed his temple. "This is going to be a fun pregnancy."

()

I woke Ward in the middle of the night, crying out in pain. He jolted up, pulling back the covers to show my stomach had grown even more. "It hurts," I whimpered.

"Just breathe, baby," he encouraged as he put a hand on my stomach to feel the baby move. "Whoa…"

I whimpered. "He's growing so fast!"

He scooped me up. "I'm getting you to the lab."

()

Both Fitz and Simmons came this time, rubbing sleep from their eyes. My belly had swollen up to a basketball size. Maybe. I couldn't really think of sports at that time. Ward set me down on a table. "She's in pain," he informed them.

Fitz went to one side of the room, Simmons to the other, pulling together both technology and chemistry to come up with solutions. "This should dull the pain," Simmons began, bringing a needle to me.

"No! What about the baby?" I pulled my arm back.

"It's safe, I assure you." She put a hand on my arm. "I would never risk that."

I nodded and let her inject me, the liquid took effect quickly, easing the pain in my stretching stomach. "This is insane. At this rate I'll be giving birth in a month."

Fitz cleared his throat. "A week."

"What?"

Fitz brought over a device. "This will help distribute your hormones more evenly." It looked like a bracelet. "It regulates the thyroid." He clicked it on my wrist.

I gasped as a shock wave flooded over me. "Wow…"

Simmons grabbed her tablet. "The hormone distribution may help ease the pains." She placed a device on my belly. "I'm getting good vitals. You're about six months along."

Ward took my hand. "You doing okay?"

I nodded. "It's better." I looked to Simmons. "Can you tell the sex yet?"

She nodded. "I can."

"Wait! Wait," Ward interjected. "Do we want to know?"

I sighed. "Well, we can wait I guess."

Simmons nodded. "Then wait, you shall."

()

Fitz's bracelet helped even out my moods as well. I'd settled into a slight depression. I wasn't going to get to have a baby shower, decorate a nursery, or go through cute maternity outfits.

I was also starting to waddle.

I sat on the couch, picking up a copy of _the Hunger Games_ from the side table. I grinned. Skye had bought it for Ward. I pressed my lips together. Things were going so well. We were a team. Now I was the hapless victim. It was strange to think of it like that. Why did that word come to mind? Victim.

I had dozed off while reading, my body exhausted by the rapid changes. But this time, I dreamed.

_I was standing at that bridge in Washington, the one I had jumped off of. Below me, I watched the river flowing freely. I could remember how icy that water had felt, how it had frozen my skin. But in this dream, I was warm. The sun shone down brightly, reflecting off the water. I was at full term, my belly protruding out with child. _

_"We all make choices." The voice that came from beside me was one I hadn't heard since I left the Normverse. My good friend Tammi stood there now, her shoulder length red hair swaying in the slight breeze, slight frame draped with a beautiful summer dress. _

_"And there are some choices made for us," I countered._

_She nodded to me. "Yes. But we make the choice of how to handle the outcome."_

_She turned to face me, holding a small bundle of lavender. "You've always chosen to jump off the bridge, Sita. You've always thrown yourself to the wolves for the protection of others."_

_"That's what I'm good at. I take it."_

_She handed me the lavender. "You've built up a reserve. You've protected those who can protect you. Now it's your turn. You get to be protected."_

_I inhaled the calming scent of the lavender. "But what if someone gets hurt?"_

_"Then they will heal."_

_"What if someone dies?"_

_"Then they will live on in our hearts."_

_"What if I'm too scared to let someone see me that vulnerable?"_

_"Then you will die alone."_

()

I awoke still smelling the lavender. A solitary tear rolled down my cheek. "Thank you, Tammi," I whispered softly to the air. Even though she wasn't here physically, I was holding her in my heart.

I stood and rubbed my belly. Fitz's bracelet was helping. I was uncomfortable, but it wasn't nearly as painful. I made it back to my bed, sitting down and glancing to my nightstand. There, in a tiny green vase, was a bundle of fresh lavender.


	29. Tristan

Skye had completed creating Emma Roseward. Coulson had grounded the bus for now in New York, telling Fury that his team needed some R&R. They had secured me an apartment near headquarters, a three bedroom. One bedroom would be mine, one for a temporary nursery, and one for a make-shift medical room. Everyone but Ward and myself would stay on the bus. Just in case of a visit. It was easier to explain one agent out then the entire team.

The sped up pregnancy was starting to take its toll. I was getting weak. Besides eating, Simmons was giving me direct IV nutrients to keep up with the baby's needs. I knew it was killing Ward to watch all this. I was on a very strict bed-rest, only allowed to get up for the short trips to the bathroom. He and I were both helpless to do anything.

He flipped through channels on the TV in the bedroom. "Daytime TV has sure gone down the drain."

I grinned. "Yeah. I still watch the DNA and lie detector test crap though. I get all ghetto and be all 'ooo, gurl now you know he ain't yo baby daddy!' and such."

That gave him a smile, rare these last couple of days. "You are too cute."

I rubbed my belly and shifted with a groan. He snapped to attention, helping me adjust pillows. I could never look him in the eye at times like this. I hated being weak.

"You want more water?" he offered.

I shook my head. "No. I'm fine." Well, fine might have been stretching it. Simmons was planning on staying the night tonight. I was going to pop soon.

He stroked my hair. "I'm so sorry about all this."

I looked to him this time. "What? Grant, honey, it's not your fault. Biology is to blame. That and inter-dimensional traveling and injections."

Simmons knocked softly at the fro door before coming in. "Hello?"

"Back here," Ward called out.

She made her way to us, her trademark smile in place. "There you are." As if I could have gone anywhere.

"Here I am."

She took my vitals. "All looking well." She was tense. Something was up.

"Jemma?"

She bit her lip. "I've never delivered a baby before. This is... not really my area of expertise." She swallowed.

I chuckled. "This whole scenario isn't anyone's expertise. I know that you will do your best and that you'd never hurt the baby."

She nodded. "Of course." She held her shoulders with a little more confidence. "You're right. This is a first all around."

I lurched in pain as the first contraction came on. "Oh!" My eyes temporarily blacked out. "Oh god!"

My vision came back to focus as Ward held tight to my hand. "Breathe."

"Get her to the birth room!" Simmons ordered, rushing in there herself to set up what she needed to."

He helped me swing my legs over the edge of the bed. "Nice and slow. You got this."

I held onto him and hoisted myself up onto my feet as the second contraction hit, nearly knocking me out with the pain. "Grant, I can't..."

Although it had to be the most awkward thing to do, he lifted me into his arms and got me to the other room. "Just breathe," he cooed. "I'm right here."

"Something's not right." My head was swimming as he laid me down. "Jemma..." The room went pitch black around me, their voices fading.

()

I awoke to blurry white light all around me. I could recognize the soft beep of a heart monitor. Slowly, the walls came into focus, the various electronics coming into view. I was still in the other room, on the exam table. But my legs were down and my swollen belly was a lot emptier.

May was sitting beside me. "Don't try to get up. You're still weak."

"What... the baby...?"

"The baby is healthy. You did good. We thought we'd lost you for a moment."

From the living room, I heard the soft cry of my baby. My heart swelled. The baby was alive. I was alive. Ward came in, our swaddled child in his arms. I'd never seen him look like that. He was awestruck and so happy. He looked to me. "It's a boy."

I let out a small sob of joy and held my arms out. He set my son in my arms. The tiny boy looking back at me had a lot of his father's features. Except his smile. That shit eating grin was all me. "He's so tiny," I mused.

"He's probably hungry." May stood. "I'll give you two some time." She left the room, shutting the door softly behind her.

I adjusted to feed him, my eyes going wide. "This feels so weird." I chuckled some.

Grant took my hand. "You lost a lot of blood. Your body hadn't quite been prepared. But Simmons... she brought you back. And I will never be able to thank her enough."

I squeezed his hand. "How is she holding up after her first delivery?"

He smiled. "She's three beers in."

I laughed. "That's good." I looked down at the baby. "We need a name."

"They're tossing a ton of them around out there," he motioned behind him. "Fitz is insisting Leo is a strong name."

"Yeah, no. We're not naming him after anyone on the team. This is an 'us' thing." I could not stop smiling at the baby. "He's more of a Tristan."

Ward turned this in his mind. "Tristan Ward. I like it."

"What if I want to give him _my_ last name?" I teased.

He chuckled, then asked: "Wait, what _is_ your last name?"

()

Ward wheeled me out to the living room in a nice plush wheelchair. "Everyone? Meet Tristan."

The "aww"s made their way around the circle and Tristan was passed around, sucking in all the attention he could. It warmed my heart to see that this little boy was going to have the best family around. Well, the most kick-ass at least.

I sipped some water, closing my eyes for a moment. Coulson pulled up a chair beside me. "How are you holding up?"

"Good," I opened my eyes. "I have a small favor to ask, though."

He nodded. "Lay it on me."

"Would you be the godfather to Tristan?"

Coulson inhaled sharply, his eyes softening. "I... Yes. I will."

I patted his hand. "I could think of no on I trusted more. Grant agrees. If anything happened to us..." I trailed off. Because it was a very real thing.

He nodded. "I understand. And it would be an honor."

Fitz scrunched his nose. "What the bloody hell is that smell?"

I smiled. "Uncle Leo gets the first diaper!"

()

My accelerated healing meant that in three days, I was pretty much back to normal. Except my boobs were totally huge so I could still feed Tristan. We turned Ward's old bunk into a nursery. Stark had contacted May to let her know he'd figured out the box. We were headed once again to California.

I peeked into my room after a shower to find Ward asleep with Tristan on his chest, equally passed out. This may not have been a normal life for a kid, but it was a good life. Tristan had food, shelter, and most importantly, love.

I let them sleep and headed to the lab for my blood tests. The routine was set now and I was used to the drill. Simmons had advised me that my blood work was still phenomenal and evidently my body was as changed as it would ever be. For now, the blood was just to make sure I didn't suddenly change and possibly not be able to nurse Tristan.

Skye had offered to babysit while Ward, Fitz and I visited Stark. I knew this had to be a big step for her and I handed Tristan over without a second thought. She looked like she had hope in her eyes when she looked at him. That little guy was changing everyone. Even May had been caught playing peek-a-boo when she thought no one was around.

I buttoned my suit jacket and stepped up to Stark's front door, greeted again by the gracious Pepper Potts. She let us in and led us to the lab. "It's good to see you again. How have you been?" Her glance drifted from me to Ward, her question about us.

I smiled. "Perfect."

She beamed back, letting us into the workshop. "That's wonderful."

Stark looked over at me when we entered. "So yeah, little box thing? It's working." Fitz rushed over, discussing the schematics with him in detail while Ward and I tried to keep up.

I turned my gaze to the box itself. It was fully operational. I could take Ward and Tristan back to Normverse where we could live in a house with a white picket fence and a grassy backyard with a swing-set...

"Sita?" Stark's voice pierced my daydream. "You get all that?"

I shook my head. "Sorry." I cleared my throat. "So can anyone else replicate this?"

He shook his head. "The raw material it's made from isn't found here. But I was able to replicate the power source with an element I had."

I felt a sense of relief wash over me. "That's good."

"Unless that raw material can be brought through the Walk," Ward thought out loud, bursting my happy bubble.

Pepper picked up the box and handed it to me. "This is best in your hands, I'm thinking."

I took it, the cool metal chilling my skin. "Let's hope."

()

If it was one thing I had learned from watching some seriously good shows about smuggling (like smuggling things through space around the Alliance's watch), I knew that secrecy was key. There were nooks and crannies everywhere. You just had to know where to look. To know that the box was completely safe, I had to be the only one who knew where it was.

In the wee hours of the morning, I crept down to the loading bay, silent as a cat. The hatch behind the fire extinguisher caught my eye and, using tools I'd swiped from Fitz, I removed it and placed the box inside. I reattached the hatch and fire extinguisher and sighed. I couldn't even tell Ward. If there was any chance that someone dosed him with truth serum, I couldn't risk it.

Making my way back to bed, I froze. Ward was standing in the center of the living area, rocking Tristan to sleep. His eyes locked on mine. "Where did you go?"

"I needed to stretch my legs." Only a half-lie. "Did he wake you?"

He nodded. "Think he's hungry."

I stepped closer and held out my arms. "Here."

He handed over Tristan, watching me. "What were you really doing?"

I sat in a chair, pulling a throw over me and feeding my son. "What?"

"I can read you better than you think. You're not telling me something." He crossed his arms. "What were you doing?"

"Grant, I can't get into this right now." It was really awkward to have a fight with your boyfriend while breastfeeding.

"Into what? What are you hiding?" Ugh. Here came out the agent again.

"I was destroying the box." That time, I'd bald faced lied.

He was taken aback. "You what?"

"Stark said no one else had the materials to duplicate it. So that box would be what Holtz would need. I can't let her get it." Tristan squirmed, sensing my tension.

"So you just destroyed it? Sita, that was your ticket home."

"I have a home here."

"What about getting messages to family and friends?"

"I'm not going to risk it, Grant, and that's final!" Tristan detached himself from me to let out a wail. "Shit." I tried to take deep breaths and calm. "It's okay," I cooed to him, slowly getting him back to feeding.

Ward threw his hands up in defeat. "Fine. I'm going to bed then." He stormed back to our room, leaving the door open for me for when I was ready.

I looked down at Tristan. "If you ever throw a temper tantrum like your daddy, we're going to have more than words, little man."


	30. Swing of Things

Fitz about broke when I told him I'd destroyed the box. "How? How did you do it?"

"It's incinerated."

"But you didn't do it on the bus. The fire alarm would have gone off!"

"Fitz, it's gone. I really did destroy it."

His shoulders slumped. "But..."

"It was for the best." The rest of the team was there, all staring in some form of surprise. No one had guessed that I would have destroyed the box. My only saving grace was the baby monitor. Tristan woke from his nap, crying out. "I have to go." I rushed to the nursery, happy for the diversion. "You are the best spy-baby _ever,_" I approved, setting him on the changing table.

"He hit the jackpot in the gene pool," Coulson said from the doorway. "His father is a super spy, and his mother is a brilliant portal jumper." He leaned on the door frame, crossing his ankles. "But a horrible liar."

I winced. Damn him and his skills. I kept myself focused on the diaper change. "What are you talking about?"

"You didn't destroy the box. Fitz was right. There was no way you could have incinerated it on the bus and we would have known if you had opened the ramp to go out."

Ugh. I needed to learn better lies. "Coulson, the box is destroyed. That's what needs to have happened." I looked to him this time, my eyes trying to convey the urgency of my silent plea.

He met my gaze, but his facial expression was blank. "Hiding it in a closet isn't going to keep it out of Holtz's reach if she really wants it."

I redressed Tristan and handed him to Coulson. "Here. This is all you have to think about. How adorable this little man is."

Trapped by a baby in his hands, I slipped past him without further words.

()

The next day, I dressed in shorts and sandals, putting Tristan in a cute summer outfit. I had to get him off the bus for a while. There was a whole world out there and the ocean was the first thing I needed to show him.

We were lucky Fitz was an engineer because if left to his own devices, Ward would have never gotten the stroller together. The words that came out of his mouth would have made a sailor blush.

Tristan seemed to enjoy the new world around him. Ward and I went to an ocean-side park and sat on a bench, letting the warm sun soak in. I put the shade down over Tristan and sat back. "He's asleep."

Ward put his arm around me. "So, I'm thinking we should get married."

There were double-takes, and then there were twelve-takes. "Pardon?"

"Married. You know, for better or worse?"

"Wa... was that your proposal?" Please don't say it was. Please don't say it was.

"Well, I..."

I stood up. "Oh love a gourd, Grant. _That's_ how you ask me to _marry_ you?"

"What? What's wrong?"

I grabbed my water. "You just made me sound like a consolation prize!" I took a deep breath. "I need to not be around you right now. Stay with Tristan." I stormed off in a huff, sipping my water to try and cool down. "I'm thinking we should get married?" I mumbled to myself. He hadn't had a ring. He didn't make a romantic gesture. He didn't even say anything about love. Just rattled it off like it was the next thing on his chore list!

I kicked off my sandals at the water and let the shallow waves lap at my feet. Closing my eyes, I breathed in the ocean air, calming down. He still had a lot to learn about social interactions.

I sighed and opened my eyes. He was trying. I turned to get my sandals and gasped. "No," I whispered.

Eric smiled, holding my sandals. "You dropped these." He extended them out to me, the shiny SHIELD bracelet glistening in the sun.

My eyes narrowed as I snatched them from him. "What are you doing here?"

"I could ask the same about you. Last I'd heard, you were being shipped down to Mexico." He stuffed his hands in his pockets. "Look, I think we got off on the wrong foot before.""

Okay, of all the things I thought he would say, that was _not_ on the list. "Wrong foot? Lord love a duck in a pickup truck, are you high?" I started heading back up the shore.

He followed. "I'm not high. I'm apologizing."

"You're not forgiven." I stopped. I couldn't have him follow me to Tristan. "Just go away."

He shook his head. "Look, I'm helping SHIELD now. I admit that I was a bit... distracted. Simon's death hit me hard."

"You drugged me, kidnapped me, then told my boyfriend that we had sex. Oh, and let your little lap dog experiment on me. That's not distracted. That's psychotic." I crossed my arms.

"I promise, I'm turning over a new leaf."

"When the leaf is rotten, it doesn't matter what side it's on. Leave. Me. Alone."

"Are you still with that tool bag?"

I scoffed. "Are you _hitting_ on me?"

He grinned. "Is that a no?"

"Grant and I are still very together. And even if we weren't, you have a better chance with Grant than with me."

"So there is a chance?" He smiled.

My jaw dropped. "No. Zero. Zilch. Nada. Now leave me alone!" I couldn't use my super speed in public. Crap on toast. I had to get him gone.

"Okay, okay, I'll go... if..." His eyes twinkled. "You give me a way to contact you."

"No."

"You have to give me something here, Sita."

"Know what's funny? I really don't. Now leave before I put you down right here." I put my right foot back some, preparing my stance like May had taught me.

He held up his hands in defeat. "Okay, I'll go. I'll just have to find my own way to contact you." He took a bow and made his way, the opposite direction of the way I needed to go. It was a slight relief. I didn't want to have to try to lose him.

Ward was pushing the stroller back and forth when I came back. Tristan was slowly going back to sleep but at the sight of me, he cried out. I picked him up, bouncing him in my arms gently. "Hey, little man," I cooed. "Did you wake up? How dare that sleep run away like that?"

Ward didn't speak up, just adjusted the blankets in the stroller and took out a bottle. "Can I feed him?"

I nodded and handed him over. "Probably a good idea." My eyes scanned around, paranoid that Eric had followed me anyway. But there was no sign of him.

"What is it?"

I took a deep breath. "Eric was at the water. He stopped me. But he left. I wasn't followed." I tried to sound sure. But this was not the Normverse. He could be watching in many ways.

He stood, holding Tristan close, feeding. "We need to get back to the bus."

I nodded, pushing the stroller, keeping my eyes open for any signs.

()

Simmons watched me pace in front of her. "You and Ward were careful. I'm sure you weren't followed," she insisted. "Besides, even if he saw you with Tristan, he couldn't possibly think he's yours. He would think it was a cover."

I nodded. "True. It hasn't been even close to nine months."

"And your files have been sealed. No one but those on this plane know."

I nodded again. "Right."

"So Tristan is safe."

I stopped pacing. "Right." I let out a whoosh of air. "I _knew_ it was a bad idea for SHIELD to let him off so easy!"

"We should report to HQ…"

"No! Then we'd have to talk about Tristan and if word gets back to Holtz…"

"So what do we do?"

I took a deep breath. "I need to go see Eric alone. I need to really get it through his skull that messing with us is a bad idea."

Simmons winced. "Ward won't like that."

"He doesn't have to know."

()

The last time I had been in the surf shop, I had been excited at the thought of diving in the ocean to catch a wave. Now, opening the door to the tiny chime of a bell, I wasn't feeling anything but determination. My boots clicked on the hard wood floor. There were a couple of customers but they were being helped by someone else.

I waited at the counter. A sales girl came up to me. "Good morning! Can I help you?"

"I was looking for Eric."

"He's called in sick today. Was there something I could help with?"

There was no way he was sick. "No, thank you. I'll come back another time."

()

Ward was pacing the ramp when I entered. "Where the hell were you?" he snapped.

"I left milk for Tristan in the fridge," I justified.

He crossed his arms. "That's not the point. Remember how you weren't supposed to go out unaccompanied?"

"That was before my super-speed power thing." I started to walk past him to the stairs.

He stepped in my way. "Where were you?"

"I went for a walk."

The scowl was prominent on his face. "Why do you keep lying to me?" There was more than anger in his voice, there was hurt.

I held strong, pulling my shoulders back. "I'm not lying. I went for a walk. I'm sorry I didn't check in with you but I really just needed some time by myself."

His eyes were focused on mine, looking for any tell-tale signs. "Okay. I trust you." He stepped aside. "Fitz is watching Tristan. Last I saw they were in the nursery and he was reading to him."

One of the many bonuses on the bus was the reliable babysitters. "I think I'm going to eat, then. You want something?"

He nodded. "Sure."

()

I slipped into Coulson's office without knocking, trying to not bring attention to the fact I was there. He looked up from his phone. "Sita? What is it?" He had been briefed about my run-in at the beach with Eric.

I took a seat in front of his desk. "I had to lie to Grant. I didn't just go for a walk today."

He set his phone aside. "You went to see Eric."

I looked down. "I can't let him find Tristan. I was going to go make sure he didn't come after me." I crossed my legs. "When I came back, I told Grant that I had just gone for a walk. If he knew that I was going after Eric alone..."

"He'd be upset, for sure," Coulson finished. "But I think lies are going to upset him more."

"This I know." I flopped my head back with a sigh. "I want him to be happy. I want him to spend time with his son and not worry. Well, not worry any more than a normal parent."

"But you're not normal parents, Sita. I told you this would change things." He shook his head. "You can't just go forward into danger anymore. If you die, you leave Tristan without a mother."

"That's not something I'm striving towards, Phil."

"Well, you went right out to Eric without even consulting me. Just because you didn't want Ward to worry doesn't mean you blatantly disregard the chain of command here on my bus."

I swallowed thickly. "I'm sorry."

"Apologizing doesn't change the fact that you're reckless. You have a good heart and you're smarter than most, but you rush out on your own trying to be everything for everyone. And sooner or later, your plate is going to be so full that you're going to break. You'll lose your focus, get sloppy and get yourself killed in the process."

I pressed my lips together, trying not to cry. I felt like I was getting scolded by my father.

He folded his hands on his desk. "I don't want to have to waste resources monitoring you. I want to trust that you'll start thinking about how things can effect you. Can you do that for me?"

I nodded.

"Sita, I believe in you. I know you've got gifts and talents to give. You just have to realize that everyone on this team is a piece to the puzzle. You need to hang on to them and keep together with all of us."

"I understand." And I did. It was mirroring some of what Tammi had told me in my dream. "It's a really hard habit to break."


	31. Broken

In a strange twist, Fitz asked to join me on a walk with Tristan. "Well, a little fresh air does us all a bit o' good now, right?"

I went armed this time. I had a small pistol strapped at my ankle and another gun hiding in Tristan's stroller. If Eric did indeed try something, I would have no qualms about taking out his kneecaps.

As we walked, I let Fitz push the stroller. He'd been working on some technological tweaks so that when the shade was pulled down, there would be a calming light show to soothe the baby. It probably wasn't the best thing to turn his attention to but he wanted to do something for Ward and I.

"Bloody hell," he whispered with a smirk.

"What?"

He pointed to the window of a store that sold baby clothes. The doll in the window was displaying as a baby wearing a monkey suit. "We _have_ to get him that."

I laughed. "Okay, okay. But he can't be your assistant until he's older." I turned into the store, finding a monkey outfit that was a little big for Tristan so that he could grow into it. Fitz paid for it, stating that since it was more for his enjoyment, he should get it.

Taking my shopping bag, I turned and almost ran right into Eric. "They overcharge here," he smiled.

Fitz immediately stood in front of the stroller.

I clinched the bag. "Go away. I mean it. I want you to stay away from me and my entire team. Are we clear?"

Eric's eyes peered behind Fitz and into the stroller. "Now this is interesting. No one on your team was pregnant when you left. Stray baby?"

I started to slowly move to the back of the stroller where the gun was. "Part of our cover. If you're really helping SHIELD, you won't break it."

"Undercover? Interesting. And this one?" He motioned to Fitz. "He your 'husband' for this?"

"Eric, go. Just leave us all alone." I was almost to the gun.

But almost wasn't enough. He stepped so close I could feel the warmth of his body and his breath on my cheek. "How can I leave you alone? You've filled my every thought. All I can do is try to make you see how it could be." He caressed my arm, making me flinch. "All you have to do is come with me and I can give you everything."

"Let her be," Fitz warned, trying to look like he was more of a threat. "We have our team on site. One word..."

Eric loomed over the smaller man. "One word and I'll snap your neck before they can get in the door."

I grabbed the gun, holding it down a little out of sight so as not to scare the other people in the store. "You have till the count of three before I shoot."

He laughed. "You won't kill me."

I shook my head. "No, but you can make damn sure I'm not going to leave you with the ability to walk. And if you piss me off any more, I'll make you useless to a woman."

He chuckled and took one last look in the stroller, studying Tristan. I hoped against hope that he didn't see how those eyes belonged to Ward. "For now, sweet Sita, I'll go. I wouldn't want you ruining me before you get a chance to experience true pleasure." He reached to touch me again but I raised the gun, making him back off. "Fair well then." Turning, he gave a nod to Fitz and left.

I lowered the gun quickly, putting it away with shaking hands. Fitz plucked Tristan up and held him close. "Do you think he knew it was your baby?" he asked, worried.

"I have no idea. But we can't stay in California any more."

()

Fitz and I reported the altercation to Coulson and Ward. Just thinking about that psycho touching me made me ill.

"What about Mexico?" I inquired. "The attacks..."

"They stopped after we obtained the sphere," Coulson reported. "Which leads us to believe that it may have controlled more than just body switching."

"Where should we go, then?" I just wanted out of California as fast as possible.

"We'll head to the fueling station in Denver." He stood. "There's another mobile command there that we can check in with and see where we can help. Until then, get some R&R."

()

I took a long hot shower, washing away the worries as best I could. I dressed in full pajamas, not wanting my skin to show. The way Eric had looked at me was so lecherous that it gave me the willies. Ward was lying Tristan to bed as I walked up. He snatched the monitor and went with me to our room.

I sat with my back against the headboard, hugging my knees up to my chest. "Can we watch TV for a bit? I'm not ready to sleep."

He nodded and handed me the control, changing for bed into his sweat pants. "You okay?"

I shook my head no.

He sat beside me. "You can talk to me."

"It's just the way Eric looks at me. Like I really am something he wants to own. Then he touched me..." I shuddered. "It's vulgar."

"Looking at his profile, he's psychologically unstable. You're just his current obsession. Once we put some distance between us and him, he'll move on." He patted his lap. "Here. Give me your feet. I'll help you relax."

I obliged, resting my feet in his lap.

He took my right foot, gently massaging. "This has been a rough few weeks."

"Yeah. Thought maybe we'd be getting a vacation while we were here."

"We'll get a real vacation. I promise." He pressed his thumb into the ball of my foot, hitting a pressure point that immediately relaxed me more.

I closed my eyes and leaned back. "There's no rest for the wicked."

()

Once in Denver, Coulson made sure the nursery was secure before we departed. If anyone found it, there would be strange questions to ask. As it was, we had placed Tristan in his car-seat in the SUV with a stocked diaper bag before lowering the ramp. The tinted windows kept him a secret. Ward and I had to pick up more supplies for him since we couldn't really requisition Huggies.

He was at the wheel, allowing me to take in the scenery of the Mile High City. It had been a long time since I had been there. I'd gone once when I was sixteen to visit a friend. Certain parts of the city were so amazing to see while others showed a poverty that reflected the blind eye most of us turned to the horrors of humanity.

Ward parked in front of a warehouse store, retrieving a cart as I pulled out the car-seat and set it in. We looked like a plain Jane couple. No one knew the secret compartment in the carrier that held my gun and three extra magazines. Ward had his gun holstered at his hip, covered by his coat.

Making our way through the large isles, I felt the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. It was that generic horror movie feeling where you expect the ax murderer to jump out around the corner.

Ward leaned closer to me. "What's wrong?"

I shrugged. "I just have this weird feeling." I hated those words. Any time I said that, it had been a warning.

He knew that too. His posture changed. He was in watch mode now. "Anything in particular?"

"Someone's watching us." I stopped the cart to grab a pack of onesies off a shelf, trying to keep myself looking normal.

He gave a few hidden glances around. "I don't see anything."

Tristan began to wake from his nap, shifting and scrunching his face. "Ugh. Diaper change time." I lifted the carrier and hefted the diaper bag over my shoulder. "Stand post at the door?"

He nodded. "Of course."

There was only one stall occupied and from the sound of things, it was someone playing a game on their cell. Trying to relax, I changed Tristan as quickly as I could. About halfway through, I heard the toilet flush and caught the door opening from my view in the mirror. A young woman stepped out, still looking more at her phone than anything else. I fastened up Tristan's diaper as she washed and dried her hands. "Hey," she chirped. "Can I bum a squeeze of that lotion? Restroom soap sucks."

I smiled politely. "Sure." As I reached for the bottle, I made the mistake of taking my eyes off of her. There was a sharp pain in my head, then nothing as I blacked out.

()

"...mean that the security cameras didn't see!" Ward's voice was loud and irate. My eyes attempted to focus. All I saw was a bright light. Pen light. A paramedic was flashing it in my eyes.

I winced and squeezed my eyes shut. "Bright," I complained, batting at the light.

The medic shut it off. "How many fingers am I holding up?"

I looked. "Three."

He nodded. "Can you tell me your name?"

"Sita." I realized there was a sound that was missing. With all the tension and yelling, there should have been crying. "Tristan!" I tried to sit up but my head spun, making me lay back on the stretcher.

"Careful," the medic instructed. "Looks like you took a hard blow to the head."

May came over to my side. "Sita, keep your eyes closed for a while until your head can clear up some."

I did. "May, what happened? Where's Tristan?"

She was hesitating. "He's been taken."

()

"They got him out the window. Then the girl walked _right past me_!" Ward slammed his fist down on the table. "I didn't even know anything had happened!"

Skye punched more keys on her keyboard. "I'm looking through all cameras I can."

I was holding Tristan's teddy bear, curled up in a chair. I hadn't spoken since the medic cleared me. I was numb. Somehow Eric had found out. It had to be him. There was no one else who had seen Tristan outside of our team.

Everyone was still talking but I couldn't hear them. All I could hear was the voice in my head telling me what I failure I was. He was the only thing I had to protect. And now he was gone.

"Sita?" Simmons knelt down in front of me. "Sita?"

I didn't look at her. I was focused on a point somewhere far away, just clinching the teddy bear tightly.

"She's in shock," Simmons deduced, putting a hand on my knee. "Sita, I need you to listen to my voice."

I was hearing her voice. But listening? No. I was listening to the beat of my heart. It was the only thing letting me know I was still alive.

"Sita." This voice was more commanding. May. "Sita, you need to pull it together. Focus. We can't save him without your help."

But what help was I? I'd made a rookie mistake and my little baby boy was gone.

A sharp slap to my face made me gasp and pulled me to the pain in my cheek. "What the...?" I looked up to see May standing with her hands on her hips. Everyone else was in shock that she had actually done it.

"Welcome back," she muttered.

"Ow!" I stretched my jaw some. "You didn't have to hit me!" Tears started flowing from pain both physical and emotional.

May didn't blink. "You needed cognitive re-calibration."

"Guys, I have something!" Skye interrupted.

Ward raced around the table to her. "What is it?"

"The girl you described checked in to a flight." She pulled up the video on the screen. It was her, Tristan in his carrier with her. "She's headed to Canada."

Panic set in. "Holtz."


	32. Retread

We were in the air faster than I thought possible. Coulson was on the horn with Fury but had been told Holtz had no visitors and there most certainly wasn't a baby on site. When Fury asked about the baby, Coulson had just said it was a lead. Bless his heart.

Agent Hill met us as we landed. "We heard from Stark that you had obtained the portal box."

I winced.

Coulson didn't miss a beat. "It's been destroyed."

Hill blinked. "Destroyed? Who authorized that?"

I took a deep breath. "It's owner."

She turned to me. "This way." She pivoted, leading Coulson and I to Fury.

()

Fury was not happy. I didn't need him to tell me that. He was standing with his hands on his hips, glaring with that one good eye. "The box is destroyed?"

"Stark said there were no materials to replicate it here," I explained. "So Holtz would have to have my portal box to do any jump outside the Walk."

"We would have contained it."

"I couldn't take that risk."

"It wasn't your call to make!"

"No, but it was the right one."

Fury was still glaring. "You're remanded to this facility until further notice."

My eyes widened. "What?"

"I told you to keep in line. You destroyed an 084 without authorization." He motioned to Coulson. "Escort her to a room here."

Coulson cleared his throat. "Sir…"

"Did I stutter?"

I started to panic. "No, not now, please… I can't while…" I swallowed.

He crossed his arms. "While what?"

I looked to Coulson, frightened. I couldn't tell them about Tristan. There was no way.

Coulson spoke up. "Sir, can I talk to you in private?"

My stomach dropped.

Fury took a moment. "Yeah."

I trudged outside, waiting in horror. How could we get out of this? There was no way I was not going to be involved in finding Tristan. But Fury sure as hell could hold me here if he wanted.

I had taken a seat in the corridor, on the floor. This was a long talk. Which could mean anything. I jumped to my feet as Coulson came out. He didn't look happy.

"Phil?" I whispered.

"I had to swear on Lola. If you step out of line again, I lose her."

()

The site had become much more advanced since we'd left a few weeks earlier. Holtz's original camp was now expanded. The tunnels had been reinforced and now a ventilation system was in place to regulate temperature and air flow. They had even posted a map to guide people. My eyes focused on the marking labeled "Portal Control." They'd done it. They'd channeled the Walk into a functional transportation system.

The Portal Control room was buzzing with other scientists and engineers. I glanced up at the large cavern ceiling, nearly twenty feet high. In the center of the room was a large metal frame, a doorway from what I gathered, complete with a control panel beside it. Several other workstations lined the area and a few armed guards were posted nearby.

"Isn't it beautiful?" Holtz awed from beside me.

I turned to her, rage in my eyes. She had to know where Tristan was. "I think we should have a talk, you and I…"

She smiled. "Of course. I've heard that you've been doing well with the tests. Speed and reflex aptitudes are really good."

I pulled her aside. "What do you know about the child abduction in Denver?"

Her look was actual surprise. "What?"

I studied her. She really didn't know. "You haven't heard anything from Eric Williams?"

"Williams? No. From what I heard, he re-linked with the rest of PSIO."

"I thought the team here was pretty much all of PSIO."

She shook her head. "We still have three other units."

"Any others here in Canada?"

She thought. "Vancouver. There was some research into ghosts. Fleeting work about energy shifts and patterns. I think it's mostly superstition."

My heart pounded faster. "Do you have a more precise location?"

She tilted her head. "What's this about?"

"You owe me, Holtz."

She sighed. "I'll get the location."

()

I brought the location to Coulson. "This is our best lead. PSIO is still operating other locations."

Ward brought up the location on the conference screen. "Their base in Vancouver is pretty low profile. Holtz was right. This is more of a side project."

"The plane did land near there," Skye confirmed.

May nodded. "I'll lay in the flight plan."

()

I was hitting the bag. May was piloting but I remembered my drills and I wanted to be as prepared as possible. If anything could bring focus, it was this.

"Bring your hands up more," Ward instructed, coming down the stairs and wrapping his hands.

I nodded and did, punching harder.

He moved beside me. "Leave the bag. Let's do this."

I took a deep breath and took my stance. Ward was not playing. He watched my moves with an experienced eye. I threw the first punch, going normal speed for now to practice the technique. Ward deflected and swept his leg to the back of my knee, knocking me back. But I jumped up fast, anticipating that move. I spun and kicked my leg towards his face. He bent back to dodge, coming back up with a right cross that connected. I reeled, trying to regain focus as he came at me, reaching for my arm to subdue me. I kicked in my hyper speed, turning the tables and flipping him over me, pinning him down. He shoved me off, throwing down a final punch, right beside my head. Had he made contact, I would have been out.

We were both breathing heavy. He looked down at me, his face unreadable. Slowly, he moved off and helped me up. I dusted myself off and stood back. He was already moved back into his fighting stance, lunging at me again. I dodged, sticking out my leg and tripping him. He fell hard and I jumped on his back, grabbing his hair and yanking his head back, my other hand grabbing his throat. He put his hand over mine, rolling to put me on my back then twisting my hand as he moved to face me.

My eyes were welling up with tears. I was scared. Not of him, but of losing.

Ward released me, his face softening. "Sita…"

I wiped at my eyes. "Sorry. I'll pull it together."

He moved off of me, offering a hand to help me up. "That's not what I was going to say."

I sat up, but didn't take his hand. "It's what you _should_ say."

He let his hand fall to his side. "Just because you got upped by me doesn't mean you can't do this. I'm a full level seven specialist. You can handle whatever low-rent guards that PSIO has."

I pulled myself up. "What if Eric has done something to Tristan?"

His eyes darkened. "Then no power in the 'verse will stop me from hunting him down."

()

May pulled me aside after we landed. "I don't want you to go on this mission."

My eyes about popped out of my head. "Excuse me?"

"Ward isn't going either. Both of you are compromised."

"May, all due respect but…"

She held up her hand. "No buts. I've already discussed this with Coulson."

"Well I haven't!"

"Ward's in with him now. There's nothing you're going to say that he isn't." She crossed her arms. "You know I'm right. Coulson and I will take this."

I took a step back, balling up a fist. "Don't make me do this, May."

"Stop." Coulson's voice was sharp behind me. "Stand down."

I whipped around to face him. "You can't come between me and my child."

"I know. Which is why I wanted to have you face me." I felt the poke in my arm too late.

()

I woke in my bunk, Ward asleep next to me. He'd been drugged, too. I lurched out of bed, grabbing my head as it spun. "Coulson…" I grumbled.

Ward groaned from beside me, waking. "What the…"

I turned to him. "Drugged. Me too."

He sat up slowly. "Coulson and May," he confirmed.

I slipped out of the bunk, finding FitzSimmons in the lab, monitoring the signals from Coulson and May. "Where are they?" I barked.

Fitz jumped slightly and Simmons gave a nervous chuckle. "They're still speaking with the person on site. Seems like they're doing well." She gave a smile.

I didn't return it. "Can they hear us?"

Ward came in behind me and hit a button. "Now they can."

"Coulson, you yellow bellied son of a biscuit eating Barbie doll…"

He didn't respond to me. But we could hear him on com. "A tour of the facility would be wonderful. Is Mr. Williams available? We have some questions to ask him."

Another voice came on. "Mr. Williams is on his way back from the States. We expect him tomorrow."

I clinched my jaw. He really was behind this.

"Here's my card. Please have him call me as soon as he's in."

()

I was in Coulson's office when he came back, my knees bouncing as I saw in wait. "You drugged me," I stated plainly.

He nodded. "Yes, I did." He sat behind his desk. "I wasn't going to risk an unneeded altercation."

"You could have just talked to me about it."

"No, I really couldn't. Even Ward was uncontrollable. If, with his training, his paternal instincts took over, I knew your maternal ones would be ten times as bad."

I inhaled through my nose, trying to calm. "Did you find Tristan?"

He shook his head. "No, but we did plant a little device to get Skye into their local network."

I perked up. "Yeah?"

He nodded. "Not my first rodeo. If Tristan is there, Williams will want him alive and well."

I felt a lump in my throat. "I'm sorry. It just feels like a part of me has been ripped apart."

"I know. Which hinders your thinking. But you can trust me, you know this."

I closed my eyes. "I do trust you. I just need him in my arms."

()

Everyone was surprised when Coulson's cell rang and he responded to the called with: "Mr. Williams, thank you for contacting me."

Fitz ran to the war room and quickly started recording and tracing the call. I held my breath but tried to keep back so Coulson could continue.

"Yes, that is what I'm calling about."

I smacked Fitz on the arm. "Why aren't you putting it on speaker?"

He winced. "Ow! And it would create feedback. Williams would hear it."

Coulson continued. "I don't think that's your call. All we want is the child. If you don't return him, I will give my team permission to extract him and destroy you."

Couldn't help it. My heart warmed to that.

As Coulson ended the call, Fitz nodded. "Got a lock."

"He said he'll give Tristan over." He looked to me. "For you."

"Why am I always on the table?" I asked no one in particular. "He's become obsessed with me."

"He saw you in that black dress," Fitz mumbled under his breath.

Ward bypassed the comment. "We can't just turn her over."

"Agreed. Which is what I told Williams. His counter was at least talking to you. He said you can have as much security as you'd like."

I was confused. "What? Really?"

He nodded. "Yes. Which is why May, Ward, and I will all be going."


	33. Hope

I sat in the busy coffee house, a hot tea in front of me. Coulson, May and Ward were positioned around in various spots. I'd want to talk to Eric alone first, but there was no way I was going to not have any backup.

Eric slid smoothly into the chair across from me and smiled. "Sita."

I nodded. "Eric."

He drank in my appearance. "I'm so glad to see you."

"I'm really not glad to see you. Where's my son?"

"He's near. I'm sorry that I had to use him to see you. But when you left California, I knew I had to get your attention." He leaned back in his seat. "I wasn't even sure he was yours. But the DNA proved it. Tell me, when did you have him? I never even saw you pregnant."

"You can thank Solution 42 for that one," I grumbled. "It accelerated the pregnancy."

"Huh. Interesting. That was one side effect I bet Dr. Holtz wasn't expecting. Although, knowing what I do about you, you've kept this out of Holtz's eyesight."

I nodded. "And it's best to keep it that way."

"I wouldn't let her experiment on your son, Sita. There are lines."

"But you took him from me." I gripped my teacup tighter. "I want to see my son."

He nodded. "Of course. Will you at least stay to talk to me if I have him brought here?"

I thought about it for a moment. "Yes."

He smiled and motioned to a woman at a table with a stroller. She wheeled it over and opened the shade to reveal Tristan.

I let out a sob of relief and grabbed him, holding him close. "You're safe," I whispered to both myself and everyone listening on the com.

"I am truly sorry to have caused you concern," Eric apologized. "I had to get you to come talk to me."

I narrowed my eyes at him. "You have ten minutes."

He nodded. "Okay, that's fair." He leaned forward. "Sita, you are truly a magnificent woman. And I can't stop thinking about you. You know that you feel something for me as well. I can see it in your eyes."

"That would be nausea." I cradled Tristan close. "Eric, I'm flattered but we will never have anything. I need you to understand that."

"I understand that you've gotten a bad impression of me. I know that your son being taken didn't really improve that and I'm sorry." His gaze dropped to my hands. "I also see that his father hasn't made a proper lady out of you."

I groaned. "Seriously? Eric, I want you to hear me. Really hear me. There will never, I repeat _never_ be anything between us. You have crossed too many lines with me and it is unforgivable. If you truly have feelings for me like you say you do, you'd want me to be happy. And for me to be happy, I want you to leave me alone."

The tiniest bit of reality crept into his eyes. "You have a point."

"I'm sure there's someone in this dimension for you. Someone from here that will make you as happy as I am with Grant. But please, I'm begging you, leave me be. Having to look over my shoulder because I fear for my family is really taking its toll on me."

He looked down. "I can make you happy."

"I'm happy where I am."

Coulson stepped up to the table. "Mr. Williams, we came here as requested, did what you asked and you got your answer." He motioned to the bracelet on Eric's wrist. "We've been kind enough not to trip that but if you give us cause..."

Eric fingered the bracelet. "I know. Fury made it clear. I was surprised you didn't set it off when the baby disappeared."

"If we don't have to take a life, we prefer that. But rest assured, if you make an attempt to get to her again, or if you harm any of her family, you'll push us to that line."

He hesitated, then reached into his jacket pocket, causing Coulson to tense for a moment. But he only pulled out a box about the size of a cigarette pack. "This is the sample of blood we took from the baby." He slid it on the table to Coulson. "I was planning on sending it to Holtz for examination." He looked to me. "But, to show you I mean no harm, I'm giving it to you."

Coulson picked up the box, opened it and nodded. "Thank you." He motioned to me. "Sita, go on. I'd like to talk to Mr. Williams before we leave."

Holding tight to Tristan, I didn't argue. I had my son.

()

Ward met me on the sidewalk, his eyes misty as I handed Tristan to him. We didn't have to speak. The relief we both felt was palpable. We didn't even speak all the way back to the bus. FitzSimmons and Skye met us at the ramp, tears and smiles all around. It was only after Tristan was fed and back in his crib sleeping that I dropped to my knees near the couch and put my face in my hands, sobbing.

Ward knelt beside me, pulling me into his arms and rocking me back and forth. "It's okay. He's home. He's safe."

I clung to his shirt, just letting out all the pent up pain I had been feeling. I had tried to be so strong but almost losing him was too much. I sobbed for so long my head hurt. "I can't do this," I whispered.

"Do what?" he stroked my hair.

"I can't keep Tristan on the bus anymore."

He stiffened. "But this is where we're stationed."

I bit my lip. "It's where _you're_ stationed," I corrected.

He pulled back. "What are you saying?"

I wiped tears from my face. "I'm saying I don't know. But while Tristan is associated with SHIELD, he's in danger."

He was getting angry. "Are you saying you're thinking of leaving with him? Taking him from me?"

The thought had passed through my mind but I knew it wasn't fair. I also knew that it would still put Tristan in danger to be connected to me. "I'm saying we should let him go," I whispered.

Ward stood. "Give him up for adoption?" He looked at me in disbelief.

I nodded sadly. "Yes."

He shook his head. "No. No. How can you even think about that?"

"Because he deserves a normal life." I closed my eyes. "He deserves what we can't give him. And he's young enough he wouldn't even remember us. He doesn't have to know he's adopted."

"We're not doing it. Forget it. I refuse to give up my son." He balled his fists at his side. "And don't ever ask me to again."

I swallowed and looked up to him. "Then we have to tell Fury. We'll need his help."

()

I was pretty sure that Fury was getting tired of seeing me. But this time, I was going to keep my smart mouth shut. Or at least try to.

There are few things that would surprise a SHIELD agent, and one of them was seeing a baby stroller being pushed down the hall to Fury's conference room. As I entered with Ward and parked the stroller by the table, Fury gave a look of confusion. I simply plucked Tristan out and held him in my arms. "Director Fury, meet Tristan Ward." No use beating around the bush.

Agent Hill's jaw hit the floor. "You had a baby?"

Fury crossed his arms. "You couldn't have."

I nodded. "Welcome to another side effect of Solution is the reason I took matters into my own hands with the box. This is the reason that we just went to Vancouver. And this is the reason for the R&R in New York."

Agents of SHIELD were trained to handle any situation. Still, having a baby in the conference room of Fury's mobile command stumped them. After a few minutes, Fury took a seat. "This changes a few things."

I nodded. "I know." I handed Tristan to Ward and pulled out the box that Eric had given us. "I was afraid of Holtz finding out and experimenting on him. But now, we've seen that she's not the only danger." I slid the box across to Fury. "Here's a blood sample from him that she can have but touching my son is off the table."

He opened the box and looked at the sample. "If we come back with results that he's different..."

"Then you can work with Grant and I. But I'm not leaving our son alone with that woman." I tried to hold back the venom that threatened to leak through my voice.

He gave a small scoff. "You've got this all figured out then, huh?"

I shook my head. "No. But I know now that we can't do this alone. And hiding isn't going to help. That's why I'm here to ask you for SHIELD's cooperation." I swallowed. "Please?"

He looked impressed. "You just said 'please' in a non-sarcastic way."

"There's a time and place to be insubordinate. This isn't one of those."

He turned the box over in his hand. "Coulson may have been right about you after all." He handed the box to Hill. "Get that to Holtz and brief her on where it's from." He stood. "And let her know that she won't be having any contact with the subject."

I slumped with relief. "Thank you, sir."

He pointed a finger at me. "Work with Simmons to get on something so this doesn't have a repeat occurrence. We clear?""

I nodded. "Yes, sir."

He walked over to Ward, examining Tristan with his one good eye. "Kid's got your smile, Sita."

()

I lay in bed alone. Ward was in the nursery getting Tristan to sleep. Simmons spent most of the day with Holtz working on Tristan's blood sample. She went directly to bed, her eyes worn from reading over data line after data line. Coulson had been quiet in his office. Skye and Fitz had tried to keep themselves to give Ward and me time with our son.

That time was tense. Ward hardly talked to me at all. I knew he was still upset about the suggestion I had made.

I heard the nursery door shut softly, but the door to our room didn't open. I waited silently, listening, but still nothing. Pulling on a robe, I opened the door myself and came out, looking over to find Ward resting on a couch.

"Grant?" I cooed softly.

He opened his eyes. "Yeah?" He sat up.

"You coming to bed?" I hugged myself, feeling a chill.

He ran his fingers through his hair. "I was gonna stay up and read."

"By lying down and closing your eyes?" I swallowed.

He sat silently for a while. "Sita, go to bed."

"No. Grant, talk to me. Please. Are you mad at me?" I sat beside him.

He inhaled deeply and leaned back. "No." He sighed. "It just really upset me when you told me we should give up Tristan."

"I'm sorry. I am. It was something that I didn't think all the way through. But baby, that's why I talked to you. I would never, _ever _do anything like that without talking it out with you." I took his hand and kissed it. "I love you."

He kissed me. "I love you, too." He pulled me into his arms. "I know you were scared. It's my job to keep you safe. That way you don't have to be scared at all."

"We keep each other safe. How about that?"

He grinned. "Deal."

()

I woke to Tristan's cries on the baby monitor. Ward and I had dozed on the couch. Stretching, I silenced the monitor and shuffled to the nursery. A simple thing such as changing a diaper seemed surreal at the moment. Rocking him back to sleep, I finally felt peace. I was letting people help me. I was trusting people again. I wasn't alone.

"I can take this watch." I looked up to see Coulson leaning in the doorway. "I have extra energy to burn. I can rock him for a while. Go wake Ward enough to get the both of you to bed for some real sleep."

I grinned at him. "Sounds good." I passed my son over. "Thanks."

He nodded. "Go on. Get some rest."

I tugged Ward to bed, curling up to him. "I think we're out of the woods."

He grunted. "And now we're in the desert."

()

Coulson pounded on the door. "Sita! Ward!"

I leapt up, fearing something wrong with Tristan, but when I opened the door, he was safe in Coulson's arms. "Get dressed. We've got a situation at the portal."


	34. End of the Road

I blinked against the smoke, coughing. "Coulson!" I shouted. It was hard to hear over the crackling, snapping blaze of the fires around. I kicked at some debris. "Coulson!" I tried again. Shoving back a heavy piece of a shelving unit to the side, I gasped. "Simmons…" I dropped to my knees and checked her for signs of life. She was bruised, sooty and bleeding, but alive. I drug her out of the building, heading back in for any other survivors. "Coulson!" I screamed out in desperation.

"Here!" he yelled from the back of the burning room.

I shoved my way back to him, finding his leg pinned under a beam. "Hang on," I ordered. "I'll get it." Grunting, I lifted with all my might, loosening it enough to let him free. I helped him up, supporting him as I ushered him out. "Wait here. I have to get Grant."

He winced. "Sita, Ward's dead."

_The day before…_

Skye stayed behind with Tristan while Coulson lead Ward and me to the portal room. FitzSimmons were waiting for us there.

With an active looking portal.

Fitz jogged up to me. "We tried to stop her."

"Stop her from what?" I probed.

"Bringing through someone from your dimension."

My eyes snapped to the portal where I noticed that there was a huddled figure, cloaked in a blanket. My speed kicked in as I rushed to the figure, tossing back the blanket. A small blonde woman, no more than maybe twenty years old, looked up to me with big blue eyes. I didn't know her. It was a small relief.

I turned my attention back to the others. "Why didn't you just send her back?"

Fitz sighed. "Holtz scrambled the lock as soon as the girl was through."

"Where's Holtz now?"

Coulson stepped up. "Interrogation. Sita, we brought you were to talk to the girl."

I took a deep breath and nodded. The girl must have been terrified. I turned to her. "Hey," I softly spoke. "What's your name?"

She swallowed. "Lily."

"Lily, I'm Sita. And we're going to help you."

()

I had insisted Lily become a resident on the bus for now. There was no way I trusted her any closer to Holtz. Especially after I was informed that they weren't quite sure what her plan was.

I sat with my team in the war room while Lily napped in my bunk. "Simmons, you've had to work with her these last few days. Any ideas of what she wants another person from my dimension for?"

The biochemist sighed as she thought. "She could always want to try other solutions since Solution 42 worked on you. However, she would have had plenty of chances before now. Something changed."

"Tristan's blood," Skye offered.

I pressed my lips together to keep the anger from flowing out.

Simmons nodded. "She may be looking for another woman to mother a child since you've been taken off the table, so to speak."

"But she had to have known that Fury would never allow experimentation there," Coulson added.

"Then she has another location," May finished.

"How do we find it?" I inquired.

Everyone went silent as they thought.

"Well, we could track her the next time she went there," Fitz suggested.

"But how do we get her to go there?" Ward asked.

I took a deep breath. "We give her access to Lily."

()

I wasn't one hundred percent sure about this plan. But it was our best shot. Fitz had inserted a tracker into Lily's hand and sent her to Holtz. I stayed back on the bus, letting May take her. I sat in a chair with Tristan, rocking him slowly. I realized that Coulson had been right about Tristan being something that compromised me. I was being completely strategic with Lily. She was a person, and while I didn't want her to get hurt, I didn't feel the same protectiveness that I had for my flesh and blood.

Simmons sat across from me with a water bottle. "He is one very well behaved baby."

I nodded. "I've noticed it depends on my moods, too. He seems to mirror me."

She took a swig from the bottle. "The blood sample we've been testing has it's own set of unique properties. It's not like Solution 42 at all. When he grows, his muscle structure should develop it's own strain of solution. He'll have a separate set of abilities."

I looked down to him. "So he won't be normal."

She shook her head. "It seems doubtful. But that's not to say we're wrong."

"So far, Holtz hasn't been wrong."

She nodded. "True."

Fitz came in to join us. "And how are the most wonderful ladies in the world?" He plopped beside Simmons.

"I'll let you know when we find them," I jested.

He grinned. "Oh! Meant to give you this." He handed me a small pen. "Explosive compound. Stick it right in what you want to blow, click the top."

I took it with a grin. "Groovy."

Coulson jogged down from his office. "She's on the move. Let's roll out."

()

To keep true to the tired cliche, Holtz was using an abandoned factory for her side projects. Skye pulled up the building's blueprints for us. Ward examined them on the screen. "I see three entry points that would benefit us strategically." He pointed. "Roof, side entrance and front door."

"I'll take the roof," I volunteered.

"I'd rather leave that to me," May amended. "Sita, you can handle the back door. Your speed will assist in catching any strays that run."

Coulson nodded. "Ward and I will take the front door. Once the area is secured, FitzSimmons will handle and possible civilians to determine if we can move them. Skye, stay here on the bus and keep the channels clear. We may need you for any program re-writes if there's any security we missed." He shut off the image. "Let's go."

()

Posted at the back entrance, I paced, listening intently to the com. Coulson and Ward were about to make their move. The adrenaline in my veins made me feel like I was on fire. "Hold positions, we're moving in," Coulson informed us.

There was a small ruckus, but nothing that the duo couldn't dispatch. Soon, I heard Coulson's voice. "Hands up! Step away from the girl." He had to have found Holtz. I was chomping at the bit. I wanted to be there.

The back door popped open, a man in a lab coat attempting his run. I clothes-lined him, knocking him down. I knelt and took a right hook across his face, knocking him out. "Got one suspect," I relayed.

"All others secured," Ward reported. "Sita, sweep in from the back to confirm. Meet us in the lab."

"Copy." I stepped over the lab tech and made my way in. The back area seemed to be storage. I found three large commercial fridges nearby. Opening them, I gasped. There were samples here as well. Egg and semen. She had this whole place set up to be a baby factory to make her creations. I closed them back up and made my way to my team.

Holtz was on her knees, cuffed with her hands behind her back along with three other assistants and two guards. May was posted in front of them. Coulson and Ward were helping the three women on stretchers sit up. Lily was one. The other two I didn't recognize. FitzSimmons came in, bots already deployed, recording everything they could.

I walked up to Coulson. "She has samples, _hundreds_ of samples that we need to destroy."

Holtz chuckled. "You think this will end with me?"

I turned to her. "I know nothing ever truly ends, but this will be progress."

"Guys? I'm getting an outbound transmission," Skye rang in. "She's sending a signal somehow."

May grabbed Holtz's collar, hoisting her up. "Who are you contacting?"

She smiled. "You'll find out soon enough."

Coulson shared a glance with May before ordering: "Move!"

FitzSimmons attempted to get the bots back in quickly as May dragged out the prisoners. Ward, Coulson and I ushered out the women test subjects. That's when we heard a rumble in the sky. "Fitz! Simmons! Hurry!" I yelled, rushing back in to help. Ward and Coulson followed, yelling at me to come back out.

There was a high pitched whistle that filled my ears before the world erupted in a blaze.

()

"Sita, Ward is dead."

I set Coulson down next to Simmons. "You don't know that." I raced back in. "Grant!" I screamed. "Grant, where are you?" Another support beam fell, dropping a section of ceiling down behind me. I coughed violently against the smoke but my regeneration seemed to be helping keep anything serious at bay.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw his hand. I followed it, lifting a stretcher off of him. "Grant," I whispered, trying to position him so I could half carry him out. There was no time to check if he was dead or alive. I had to get out before the rest of the building fell on top of me.

He suddenly became a bit lighter and I looked to see Fitz picking up the other side. Together, we made it out, setting Ward with the others as the building collapsed in on itself.

I rolled Ward onto his back, my fingers going to his neck to search for a pulse. But search was all they did. I couldn't find one and he didn't seem to be breathing. I tilted his head back some, opening his airway and began mouth to mouth. I pumped on his chest, counting out to five before breathing for him again. I repeated this until Coulson staggered over and pulled me back. "He's gone."


	35. Clean Slates

I threw Coulson back. "He is not!" I turned back to Ward. "Fight, you son of a bitch!" I slapped him hard across his face. "You've never given up, don't you dare give up now!" I hit his chest hard, tears streaming down my face. "Fight, damn you! _Fight!_" I screamed, sobs raking me as I lay my head on his chest.

His eyes opened wide as he gasped in a huge gulp of air, coughing violently.

I sat up, my own eyes wide. "Grant!" I turned him slightly on his side as he coughed up blacked gunk from his lungs.

He groaned. "What happened?"

I turned to the others with a triumphant smile. "Told you." My eyes fell towards Holtz. She had a large piece of wood sticking out of her chest, coughing up blood. I knew right away she was dying. I pulled myself up and went over to her. "I want you to look at me, Holtz." I waited till she did, her eyes frightened. "Good. Because I want you to see me. This will be the last thing you see. My triumph. You will never touch me or my son again. And your work will be destroyed."

She coughed more blood, but made a last grin. "My work will live on. In you."

My eyes narrowed as I watched her die, wondering exactly what the implied.

()

The paramedics and fire department were all around, tending to everyone. The building was completely destroyed. I sat on the edge of an ambulance, watching them work on Ward on a nearby stretcher. He had an oxygen mask on, removed every now and then as he hacked up more gunk. He'd had the worst of the inhalation. Everyone else was being treated for more minor injuries.

I stood, making it over to him and taking his hand. "Grant?"

He looked over at me, moving the mask to talk. "Who?"

I blinked. "It's me. Sita."

He shook his head. "Who am I?"

()

"Retrograde amnesia refers to inability to recall memories before onset of amnesia. Retrograde is usually caused by head trauma or brain damage to parts of the brain besides the hippocampus. People suffering from retrograde amnesia are more likely to remember general knowledge rather than specifics. Recent memories are less likely to be recovered, but older memories will be easier to recall due to strengthening over time."

I sat quietly in Ward's hospital room as the doctor continued.

"Retrograde amnesia is usually temporary and can be treated by exposing them to memories from the loss." He motioned to Ward. "This could clear up at any time."

"Or not," I countered.

The doctor nodded. "We'll just have to wait. I'll give you some time alone." He exited, leaving me with Ward.

He looked over to me. "This could be temporary," he repeated.

I swallowed. "Is there anything you can recall at all?"

He shook his head. "No. But you seem familiar."

I moved my chair to the side of his bed. "I sure hope so. I'm your girlfriend."

He took my hand. "Lucky me." He grinned.

I couldn't help but smile. "Grant…"

"Grant," he repeated as if trying to place it. "I don't feel like a 'Grant.'"

I kissed his hand. "You are. You're Grant Ward. You're a field agent for an organization called the Strategic Homeland Intervention Enforcement and Logistics Division."

He furrowed his brow. "Long name."

I smiled. "We just say SHIELD."

"Are you an agent, too?"

"No, I'm a consultant. That's how we met." I took a deep breath. "I think that we should just head back to mobile command. Some things will be easier to show than tell."

()

Ward's eyes were wide as we approached the bus. "Fancy." As we came up the ramp, he reached out to the Corvette.

"Don't touch Lola," Coulson warned, coming to meet us.

Ward stopped. "Sorry, sir." He blinked. "Sir. You're my superior."

Coulson nodded. "Yes. Agent Coulson. I'm in charge of our team." He glanced to me. "Tristan won't settle. I think he's missing you."

I took a deep breath. "Right. Okay." I motioned to Ward. "This way." I hadn't told him he was a father, yet. One more thing I hoped could jog his memory.

Simmons was bouncing my son in her arms as he cried, a look of worry on her face as we approached. "He won't stop crying," she whimpered.

I smiled and opened my arms. "Here." She placed him in my embrace and he immediately started to calm. "There we go…"

Ward was frozen. "You have a son."

I nodded. "_We_ have a son. Tristan." I kissed the top of his tiny baby head. "He's about three weeks old." I looked to Ward's eyes. "Would you like to hold him?"

He was unsure, shifting from one foot to the other. "I…"

"It's okay. You don't have to right now. Let me go feed him and put him down. Until then, maybe you'd like to talk with Coulson, get caught up."

He nodded. "That's a good idea."

()

Simmons popped a chocolate in her mouth, painting my toes in my bunk. "I'm sure he'll get his memory back. He's strong. And I'm looking into neuro receptors."

I nodded, watching her paint. "Yeah. I'm still wondering how he's going to take all the crazy crap we deal with on a day-to-day basis."

The door to the bunk opened, Ward poking his head in. "Oh! Sorry, they said this was my bunk."

I nodded. "It is. We share it."

Simmons capped the nail polish. "I should be off to my own bunk." Quickly, she made herself scarce.

I stood, swallowing. "So, you talked to Coulson?"

He nodded. "Yeah. Got the gist of what I do here." He motioned. "You don't have to get up."

I sat back down. "Do you have any questions for me?"

"You said we met through SHIELD." He sat next to me. "How did that happen?"

I grinned. "I came on to you like white on rice. Then the first time I almost died, you came to my room and we… you know…" I felt my face getting warm. Damn.

He smiled. "I know, huh? The guy with amnesia?"

I chuckled. "Right. Uh, we… had marshmallows."

He laughed. "Is that what they call sex nowadays?" Hearing him say the word "sex" reminded me that we hadn't been together since I found out I was pregnant.

My body warmed. "It's a fluffy subject." I cleared my throat. "Anyway, we fought, broke up, we got back together, we had Tristan, and now we're here."

"We're here," he echoed, his eyes gazing into mine. "And I know you. Inside." He took my hand and put it over his heart. "Here."

My eyes welled up with tears. "I thought you died."

He pulled me into his arms. "I'm sorry."

I started sobbing. "I know you don't remember, but this is the second time you almost died on me. And it still hurts so badly."

He rubbed my back. "I want to make you feel better." He tilted my head up and kissed me softly. "Let me make you feel better." He kissed me again. It was like our first kiss. For him, it really was. He knew we'd been together but the acts we did were lost to him.

I poured my heart into the kiss, trying to rekindle his memories with love. He curled his fingers into my hair, laying me back on our bed. For some reason, I felt shy. This was his first time, again, seeing me as his lover. I trembled under his touches. He was exploring me like a new delicate flower. I closed my eyes and held still, letting him trace the curves of my body gently, sending goose bumps all over my flesh.

"You're so beautiful," he whispered. "And I want you." He kissed my neck.

I whimpered. "I'm yours."

He kissed my lips ever so softly. "You're his. Grant's. And until I remember more…" He sat up, taking a deep breathe. "I think we should take it slow."

I opened my eyes. "What?"

"I feel like I don't want to disrespect you. And I want to get to know you again." He let out his breath in a whoosh. "Although I have to admit, it's hard not to just stake claim right now." He stood. "I'm going to take a shower."

"I'm going to dress in full on pajamas," I muttered as he left. Honorable Grant Ward. The thought both frustrated me and warmed my heart that he still felt respect for me without his memory. But man, it was going to be so hard to sleep beside him knowing he wanted to wait. Sighing, I changed and crawled into bed, trying to fall asleep before he came back.

I felt him get into bed. The mattress shifted under his weight and warmth seeped from him into my skin. He put his arm over me, something that he always had done. Muscle memory. I smiled and hugged his arm to me. No matter the memories, no matter the trauma, he knew me in his heart.

()

I woke when I felt Ward jerk beside me. Turning, I found him still asleep, his face tight with worry. "No," he whispered, starting to thrash. "No…"

I propped up on my arm and smoothed his hair back with my other hand. "It's okay, baby. I'm here."

He struggled some before his eyes popped open with a gasp. He sat up straight. "No!"

I sat up with him. "Grant, I'm right here. It's okay." I went to put my hand on his arm.

He jerked. "No. Don't." He took several breaths. "Don't touch me for a sec."

I swallowed. He'd never had a nightmare around me before. I was used to the calm man who slept like the dead. Now, with his brain sorting things out, he was being tortured by memories he didn't understand. "You wanna talk?"

He closed his eyes, silent for a while then spoke. "I'm okay. It was just a dream."

"It could have been a memory. You should talk to me about it."

He composed himself, some of his SHIELD training kicking in. He was shoving back his emotions. "I said I'm okay."

I pressed my lips together. "Fine." Tossing the covers back, I got up. "I have to check on Tristan." It was an excuse, I knew it. He knew it. But it kept us from the awkward silence that was starting to permeate the room. Some habits were hard to break, even without your memory. He was an Agent. He was trained to push aside anything personal and get the job done. And all the years of doing so had engrained that into his very being.

Tristan was still asleep so instead, I went to the kitchen to make some tea. I popped a SHIELD logo mug filled with water into the microwave. Thanks to having a British chick on board, we had a wonderful selection of tea. I chose a sleepy time blend, hoping that maybe it would help put me back to sleep.

"I'm sorry."

I squeaked and spun around, knocking tea packets all over. "Grant!" I held a hand to my chest. "Why couldn't scaring the pee out of me be something you forgot?"

He grinned and knelt down, picking up the packets. "Sorry for that, too, then."

I sighed and bent to help. "It's okay. And it's okay about what happened in there, too. I know none of this can be easy for you right now." I stood with the collected packets, putting them away.

He handed me the ones he'd collected. "Yeah. To say the least."

I gave him a reassuring kiss. "Don't worry. You're back with your team. You're back with your family. And if anything can jog your memory, it'll be us."


	36. Occam's Razor

Skye and Ward were training again, but I figured it was more for him than her this time. I stood back, leaning on the railing at the top of the stairs to watch. He was acclimating perfectly, his muscle memory still very intact. But something else was catching my eye. It was the look of affection he had for her. I felt a twinge of jealousy hit me hard. From the start of the show, I'd known their chemistry. It didn't elude me that just because I was here, they would just hold all their feelings back. And now Ward didn't really have a memory of me and was rebuilding. So then, if given a new chance, would he choose Skye?

I swallowed back the lump in my throat. Since he didn't have his memories, Tristan and I could leave and he could have the life he was supposed to have here with Coulson's team. The portal was fully functional at the Walk and even if Holtz had scrambled it, the pattern could be found again.

Simmons put a hand on my shoulder. "Sita? What is it?"

I shook myself and forced on a smile. "Nothing."

Her mouth quirked. "That's not a 'nothing' face."

"What if he lost his memory for a reason?" I watched him with Skye, teaching her another disarming move, her body close to his, their eyes meeting now and then.

"What reason would that be?" She didn't sound like she liked where this was going.

"Maybe this is a sign that Tristan and I should go." There. I'd said it out loud.

She gasped. "Sita… no…" She hugged me tight. "You can't think that."

I held back tears as I hugged her back. "I can't help it. It's like his own reboot that sets things the way they should have been."

She pulled back some so I could look at her face. "You've seen that there are multiple dimensions. There are multiple ways that things can be. We can't begin to think we know what should be in this one. You are where you are because you're supposed to be."

I wiped my eyes. "Thank you, Jemma."

The irony of talking about a reboot at this moment was not lost on me. I was flung back so hard with pain that I fell from the top of the stairs, landing on my back next to Skye and Ward, new images flashing into my head from a new episode in the Normverse. Everything up to Simmons' self-sacrifice and Ward's saving leap. As my head bounced off the mat, I blacked out with even more respect for the team.

()

"She's coming around."

I opened my eyes, my entire body aching.

Simmons was perched over me, flashing a penlight in my eyes. "Pupils are reacting normally." She clicked off the light. "Sita, can you hear me?"

I groaned. "Yeah."

She held up her fingers. "How many fingers?"

I squinted. "Two… twice."

She sighed. "Mild concussion. She'll need to stay in bed a bit."

I tried to sit up. "I'm f…" The room spun. "Okay, maybe not." I lay back down, closing my eyes.

I heard Coulson's voice next. "You fell off the stairs."

"Yeah," I confirmed. "Had another reboot. They seem to be getting more intense."

"What was this one?" he inquired.

I felt tears. "It's not important. Just some more insight into how much I love and appreciate you all." Man, I sure got sappy with a head wound.

There was shuffling around me as the team moved. The next voice was full of concern. "You hit the floor hard," Ward informed me. "You're probably going to be pretty bruised."

"Not really, thanks to Solution 42," I corrected. "Regeneration." And it was working on my head, too. I opened my eyes to meet those gorgeous deep brown ones.

He took my hand. "We heard a crack when you fell. I thought it was your neck."

I grinned. "You once told me it would take a wooden stake and a silver bullet to kill me."

He smiled at that. "Hopefully that's true."

I sat up, my head clearing. "It's healing. I'm okay."

Simmons shook her head in disbelief. "If we could harness just the healing properties of Solution 42..." She paused. "We might actually be able to do that." She rushed to a case. I was evidently laying in the lab. "I have your blood samples still. If I can identify which parts of your DNA were effected by the solution, we may be able to recreate it."

"Isn't that a little dangerous, though?" I puzzled. "I mean, we find a regeneration cure thing and bad guys get it and suddenly can't be harmed."

Coulson pondered this. "Let's just see what Simmons can find."

()

I knew what Simmons could find. I still had the latest episode replaying in my head. Over and over I watched her fall from the cargo bay. I sat in my bunk, curled up and confused. Why were the reboots becoming more and more harmful?

Ward slipped in, Tristan in his arms. "There's Mommy," he informed our son.

I smiled, happy he was getting back into the father role. "Hey there."

He set Tristan on the bed beside me. "You sure you're okay? You've been cooped up in here most of the day."

I shrugged. "I'm okay. Just trying to get my thoughts back into place." I sniffled a little and let Tristan hold my pinky. "How about you? Any progress?"

Ward nodded. "Actually, yes. When I was feeding Tristan, I had flash of his birth." His eyes held worry. "I saw how much you went through. I remember the fear that you were dying or that something was wrong with him. I remember seeing all that blood and not knowing if there was anything I was going to be able to do to help you."

"Hey, it's okay. I made it through." I gave him a little grin. "Anything else coming through?"

He grinned. "Yes. I remember our first kiss. When you did Morse Code on the wall."

I laughed. "You were so annoyed with me."

"Uh, yeah. I was trying to get to sleep." He smiled to me. "It's coming back. So that's a good thing."

"Agreed." I picked up Tristan and held him close.

He glanced to the left and down. That was a liar's tell, accessing the part of the brain that creates fiction.

"What aren't you telling me?"

He snapped his eyes back to me. "What?"

"One memory you should have is that I can read you. You have something you're not telling me."

He sighed. "I remember almost everything. I just didn't know what to do next. I've been talking it out with Coulson first."

My jaw dropped. "What triggered the memories?"

"Your fall." He swallowed. "Seeing you hurt like that. It snapped me to attention."

"Huh." I pondered this. "So, intense emotion worked. But, it wasn't intense enough to give you something to really focus on until then."

"I didn't want to bring it up yet because I wasn't sure about a few of my memories."

"Like what?"

"I'm sorting it out with Coulson." He steeled himself.

I chewed my tongue. "Is it about classified stuff?"

A flinch. "Yes and no."

I took a deep breath. "Okay. I trust you."

()

We were headed to Egypt. There was another team there that requested some backup in a string of strange animal deaths. I was kinda stoked to be able to see the pyramids.

Closing the door to the nursery, Tristan sleeping, I turned my attention to my hunger. The kitchen wasn't void of life though. As I approached, I heard laughter. Ward and Simmons. Hanging back, I listened in.

"Fitz's impression is much better," Simmons insisted.

"I don't know. You really have it down to a science."

"Science? Really? Are you making fun of me, Agent Ward?"

"I would never, Agent Simmons." There was a silence and I felt something hanging in the air.

I turned the corner, feigning a yawn. "Man! Putting Tris..." I trailed off, seeing Ward and Simmons quickly move to opposite sides of the kitchen. "Everything okay?"

They both nodded and assured me in unison.

"I should get back to the lab." Simmons picked up her mug. "See you all soon." One last glance at Ward and she left.

He continued making the sandwich he had in front of him. "You want one?"

I nodded. "Yeah, sure." What did I interrupt? No, I didn't interrupt anything. That was silly. They had just had a moment recalling the tragedy that almost befell them. That had to be it.

I stepped behind him and wrapped my arms around him from behind. "I love you," I whispered against his back.

He set down the sandwich and hugged my arms. "I love you, too." Turning in my embrace, he folded his arms around me and looked into my eyes. "More and more each day." Softly, he kissed my lips.

I closed my eyes and kissed him back. My paranoia was unfounded. He was just becoming comfortable with the team. That was all. It wasn't anything else. We really were becoming a family. It was just that with the recent reboot, I was once again reminded how much I didn't belong here.

He deepened the kiss, his hands sliding down my back to cup my rear and pull me more against him. I whimpered some, letting my tongue trace his lips. He turned us, pinning me against the counter and lifting me a little to sit on a clean area. I wrapped my legs around his waist and threaded my fingers through his hair.

"Ahem," Coulson cleared his throat. "Are you done with the mayo?"

I broke the kiss, biting my lip with a smile. "Sorry." I pushed Ward back some and hopped down off of the counter. He grunted his disapproval but let me go.

Coulson grabbed the loaf of bread. "I take it the memory retrieval has hit a new high."

Ward nodded. "Yes, sir. And you can have my sandwich." He took my hand. "I have a different lunch today."

I giggled as he drug me to our bunk, shutting the door behind him. "Now where were we?" He pulled me to him, kissing my neck.

I groaned. "We were at that point that we can't have sex."

He froze. "Pardon?"

"I'm still fertile Myrtle," I complained. "And we didn't really make a pharmacy stop this last time."

He sighed, slumping. "Oh, yeah. Forgot about that."

I grinned. "Cheer up. There are other things we get to do." I pushed him back on the bed.

()

"Dude, it looks like a chupacabra did this," I mused as I squinted at the dead goat.

"A Mexican goat sucker in Egypt?" Ward scrunched his nose.

I stood up from my position near the goat. "I was just saying..."

One of the dwarf bots buzzed by my head. "Whoops! Sorry!" Fitz called out.

Skye held her phone. "There was a meteor shower here a couple of weeks ago. Then there was a raid in Cairo over stolen goods. Not too much else."

Coulson looked up at the sky, the sun glinting off his sunglasses. "Meteor shower. Hmm."

"Eh, I don't think that was it," Fitz interjected. "I'm reading a portal signature that was registered with the Walk."

That caught my attention. "Any particular dimension we know?"

He shook his head. "No."

"Yes," Simmons piped up. "I mean, sort of. Solution 57 came from there."

"Did the subjects from 57 have a proclivity to eat livestock while it's still moving?" Coulson asked.

"I'll have to pull up those files as soon as we get back," she advised.

I didn't like this. If Solution 57 was the one from the cannibal group, then something very deadly could have been unleashed. "Wait, if there's portal energy, where did the portal go?"

"Maybe the same place that yours did when you appeared on the plane," Ward offered.

"We've found that a mini-portal can open to release something then dissipate," Fitz advised.

"So it's a random anomaly?" I questioned.

He nodded. "They really don't have a pattern. Although, you seem to have been the first."

"I created a rift," I whispered softly. "I made a tear outside the Walk."

"We don't know that for sure," Fitz was backtracking his words, obviously seeing that I was starting to look a little upset.

"It makes sense. There's a fabric in time and space. The glue that was holding it together was pulled apart when I came through." I looked around at the dead livestock around. "I left the door open."


	37. Dorothy and Toto

FitzSimmons had begun working on both samples from the livestock and readings from the dissipated portal. I, meanwhile, was letting myself spiral into a pity trip. I knew it was a stupid thing to do. I'd had no idea what that stupid box could do when I bought it. But did the seller? That question had never really made it into my mind. All this time, I had focused on what happened once I received the box but never did I wonder about its origins. And thanks to being in a TV dimension, I had no way to access my purchase for any clues.

The hot sun was beating down as I sat near a fountain, trying to think. If the rift was still open, it meant that more dimensions could leak through. The only thing I could think was that we had to find the rift and mend it. But how?

"Penny for your thoughts?" Coulson sat beside me.

"Yeah, these thoughts aren't really good." I leaned back on my hands. "Think of the portal rift as an open door. So, while it's unlocked, anyone can walk in and out if they stumble upon it. The only way to make sure that nothing else can come through is to lock it with a key."

"The portal box," he concluded.

"Yes. Now here's the fun part. If we follow this line of thinking, that means someone has to turn the key and make sure the deadbolt is in place." I closed my eyes. "Since it was unlocked from the other side, the lock should be secured on that side."

"That's a one way ticket."

I opened my eyes and nodded. "Yeah."

He pushed his sunglasses up some. "It may not have to be that way."

"I know. But we can't throw out that it's a good idea."

()

"Solution 57 is highly unstable," Simmons began. "In Holtz's documentations, the subjects started out with super human strength that seemed controllable. But they're mental capacity began to revert to more primal functions."

"The three 'F's," I murmured.

She shifted uncomfortably. "To be blunt, yes. They also started exhibiting pack like behavior, defining an alpha male and hunting."

"So if there really is someone from that dimension here, that's not good," Ward piped up.

"We don't have any way to know. If the solution just triggered strange things in people from our dimension, then Solution 57's original hosts could be immune to such effects."

"Can we track them?" Coulson asked.

Fitz nodded. "Yes. We've entered the portal signature into the scanners."

"Then let's move."

()

I sat shotgun beside May in the short bus, Ward and Coulson in the back, rechecking weapons. There were two energy signals matching Solution 57 and we were headed to the first. My knees wouldn't stop bouncing. We had no idea what we were going to find. Would they be normal? Would they be pack-like cannibals? Would they possess super strength?

May pulled over. "Twenty feet."

Twenty feet were desert caves. Dark, cramped, and trap-like. I shivered. "This isn't good."

May nodded. "Only one way in, one way out. And these caverns can have branch offs. We could get cornered."

I sighed. "Looks like I'm up." I opened the door.

Ward jumped out with me. "Whoa, what?"

"Super speed. I'll dash in, make an assessment and dash out." I shrugged, like it was so logical.

Coulson stepped out. "She has a point. It's harder to corner something moving that fast."

May handed me a gun. "Just in case."

I took a deep breath. "Back in a flash," I joked, kicking in my super muscles and dashing in. Time slowed around me, allowing me to see everything coming. The cave wasn't a trap. It was a make-shift home, lined with a few blankets and three people, sleeping. Two men and one woman. They looked normal enough. A little rough around the edges but they were dressed in local attire and looked like they may have recently had a bath. I couldn't see any threat. They just looked homeless.

I dashed back out, stopping short in front of Coulson before I bowled him over. "Sorry. Stopping power didn't kick in." I grinned. "But hey, got the info. Three people who look local. No signs of aggressive or pack behavior. They were sleeping. They just had blankets around in there. They may be Solution 57 dimension people. Safe."

Coulson looked to the cave, his sunglasses hiding his eyes from any read. "Let's just post here for now, then. No need to startle them. They could be just scared from the jump."

May nodded. "I'll stay."

()

Simmons pulled me aside once we came back. "You're sunburned," she observed. I hadn't even realized it. The spaghetti strapped top and shorts I'd worn in the heat hadn't protected my skin. "I have something for it."

I followed her into the lab as she pulled out a tube of ointment. "Thanks," I grinned.

She smiled. "I have something else, too." She turned and grabbed a syringe. "A little something for you and Agent Ward."

I tilted my head. "Let me guess, depo?"

She nodded. "However, I tested it on your blood first. With your regeneration, you'll burn through this in a month, rather than three. So we have to keep up with it."

I nodded. "Sounds good."

()

I read the instructions on the burn cream as I walked, subtly realizing that I knew this plane by heart now and didn't really need to look where I was going. It was like walking around my home. It was my home.

Skye gave a low whistle when I came in. "Wow… lobster," she motioned to my color.

I nodded. "Can you help me apply some ointment?" I handed her the bottle and had a seat on a bar stool.

She popped the top, starting with my exposed back and shoulders. "Wow, you really burnt."

"I didn't pay attention earlier. I was out sitting in the sun a while then I had the mission." I shrugged then winced. "Maybe my increased healing will help this, too."

She rubbed gently, making every attempt not to hurt the tender skin. "Probably."

Ward rounded the corner, a book in hand and stopped, staring for a moment. He was completely frozen, watching Skye rub my red skin. "Huh," escaped his lips.

I chuckled. "Grant? You okay there?"

He nodded. "Yeah." He was still staring.

Skye rolled her eyes. "Sita, why don't you take your top off so I can touch more of your skin," she whispered in a husky porn voice, making fun of our onlooker.

I tried to get into the same voice. "Only if you turn down the lights and put on some smooth jazz."

Ward broke his stare to roll his eyes. "You two are incorrigible." He resumed his walk to the couch to read his book.

()

My burn had healed in a few hours. This new regeneration power was really starting to come in handy. I tried to take a short nap. We would be meeting up with May after sunset. But sleep wouldn't find me. I tossed in my bunk, trying to relax. I just couldn't stop thinking of all the "what if's" in our upcoming scenario.

The bed sagged as Ward lay next to me, putting his arm around me. "You're tossing and turning."

I hugged his arm. "Can't rest."

He kissed my shoulder. "Wanna talk?"

I sighed. "I'm afraid."

He squeezed me tighter. "Of what?"

"I was talking to Coulson about the rift. And I'm wondering if I have to close it… by leaving back to my dimension." I was getting choked up.

He swallowed. "There has to be another way."

"Possibly. We're looking into it. Since we're able to track the tears and portal jumps for now, it may not be that bad but, if it gets worse, I'll have to do what I have to do."

He turned me to face him, kissing my tears that I didn't even know I had shed. "No matter what has to be done. I will always love you." He kissed my lips, caressing my hip through the fabric of my sleep shirt. He would love me. And for the mission, he would let me go. He knew that sacrifices would have to be made.

I wrapped my arms around him, trying to get him so close to me that we could never be apart. I pulled his shirt over his head, touching the slightly scarred skin of battle wounds. He sighed contently, nuzzling at the crook of my neck. I ran my fingers through his hair, closing my eyes and just allowing myself to be with him fully in that moment. All the love in the world wouldn't change what our mission was: to save the world from things not of this world. Ward pushed up my nightshirt, urging me for skin to skin contact, nothing between us. I obliged, tossing the shirt aside and kissing him, whispering softly: "I love you."

He locked eyes with me. "Then let me love you back."

()

By dusk, I was showered and dressed, feeling more complete after an… eventful afternoon. Ward couldn't stop grinning. I elbowed him as we headed to the cargo ramp. "Knock it off. Coulson's going to yell at us."

He shrugged. "Well, it got you to relax."

My face warmed. "Shut. Up." As the ramp opened, Ward and I climbed into the SUV. Coulson emerged and slipped into Lola. I was a little jealous. "If I break up with you now, I get to ride in Lola, right?" I teased Ward.

"No woman will ever come between Coulson and Lola," he informed me as we rolled out.

I sighed. "Thus, the story of my life." I grew more serious as we got closer to the cave. May was still there, under a pop up shelter she'd been left with to keep her from sun stroke. She stood when we approached, her look unreadable as always.

I hopped out, waving. "No news?"

She nodded. "They've slept all day." She turned as Coulson landed nearby. "I'm expecting they'll wake soon since it's cooled down.

I nodded. "I would."

Ward eyed the cave, hands on his hips. "So do we even know what language to expect?"

Coulson stepped up. "That's why you're here."

May moved to the right, walking slowly. "There's movement."

I tensed, my hand going to the gun at my hip. But the woman that stumbled out looked very unthreatening, blinking at the dimming light of sunset.

"مرحبا. هل تحتاج إلى مساعدة؟," Ward spoke in the native tongue of the land.

The woman looked up to him. "What?" English. Good.

Ward took another step forward. "Do you need assistance?"

The woman swallowed. "Who are you?"

Movement from the cave stopped an answer as the two men appeared, also blinking, waking. They stopped when they saw us. "What's going on?"

Coulson stepped forward, showing his ID. "I'm Agent Coulson with the Strategic Homeland Intervention Enforcement and Logistics Division. We were alerted to a signal coming from this location and came to offer any assistance needed."

One of the men spoke up. "What signal?"

"It was a form of energy signal."

The man sat in the sand. "You found the portal?" He sounded hopeful.

I stepped up. "How did you get here?"

The man looked up at me. "We were just walking through the neighborhood."

The woman nodded. "There was a flash. We ended up here. We've been just trying to survive."

I looked to Coulson and he could see my heart breaking in my eyes. These people had been ripped from their reality. "We'll help you."

()

"It still doesn't explain the animal attacks," Ward complained as we met up in the war room later that evening.

Coulson nodded. "Agreed. So another SHIELD team is going to retrieve the portal jumpers while we take a closer look here." He pulled up images we had taken earlier. "If the people from the portal didn't do this, we may able to assume one of two things. One, something else came through or two, we have a completely separate thing going on."

I opened my mouth to speak as the entire plane began to shake.


	38. Biggest Fangirl

I held onto the table in front of me as the whole plane trembled. "Earthquake?" I asked.

Coulson touched his earpiece. "May?"

"Earthquake twenty miles out," she confirmed in our ears.

We rode out the wave. Ward steadied me. "That's a great coincidence."

"Yeah," I groaned. "Like we believe in those." I turned to the monitor. "How fast can we get to the epicenter?"

()

Ward was at the wheel, barreling out in the SUV towards the epicenter. Coulson had approved us to go alone, FitzSimmons monitoring us remotely. "Head to your left," Fitz radioed.

"Copy." Ward turned the wheel, leading us out to what appeared to be a wind storm going on. A funnel had appeared, sand swirling around.

"That's it," I deduced.

He parked the SUV and hopped out with me, putting on his sunglasses. "That's not an earthquake."

It began to crackle with charges of electricity. "The rift portal," I whispered.

Ward furrowed his brow. "Stand back." He pulled out a small device, about the size of a tennis ball and threw it at the funnel. "Fitz, it's in." The device flashed and vanished.

"We're getting readings," Fitz confirmed in our ear. "It's most certainly a portal. It's got multiple signatures."

Ward took a step back, pulling me with him. "How safe are we here?"

"Er... fairly?" Fitz replied.

"That's comforting," I retorted.

"The signature is unstable. This is not a full portal." Fitz grunted. "Uh, I'd move if I were you."

Ward grabbed my arm, pulling me towards the SUV as the funnel suddenly shifted, heading right for us. I ran at his speed, making sure he was going to be safe. The winds picked up, tossing sand into our vision. I stumbled, hitting the ground with an "umph." Ward reached for me. "Sita!" As I reached for his hand, something came out of the portal, landing on top of me.

And it wasn't human.

The fur covered creature snarled, it's large fangs coming dangerously close to my head. It was about the size of a lion with dark fur and large paws that bore sharp claws. It's eyes were a bright yellow, boring down into mine.

Oh you bet your life, I screamed.

Two shots rang out and the beast collapsed on top of me. I felt a warm liquid flowing on to me from the wounds. I gagged and tried to shove the heavy thing off of me.

Ward pulled it off, looking from it to me and back again. "Fitz, how the hell do we close the rift?" He offered me a hand, helping me up.

"It would take some sort of catalyst," Simmons offered. "Something to distort the energy signal."

I looked to the funnel. "Me," I whispered.

Ward snapped to attention. "Sita, no."

I turned to him. "It was my energy that triggered these rifts. It's my energy that will close them." I grabbed his face, kissing him hard. "I love you, Grant."

He tried to grab for me but I kicked into super speed, leaping into the portal.

()

Phil Coulson shut off his video call and looked down at his desk. The portal rifts were successfully closed and no new ones had spring up. Sita had done it. She'd found the catalyst.

And she'd left a small sim card for him in his office.

He gathered the team in the war room and popped it up on the big screen.

Sita's image came up, looking confused as the camera focused. "Is it... there." She grinned to the camera. "Got it." She took a deep breath. "Okay, so if you're watching this, one of two things has happened. I either died or I have left the dimension. And knowing the track record of this team, it was probably due to a snap decision that had to be made." She hesitated, gathering her thoughts. "This time I've spent with you all has been some of the greatest of my life. And I want you all to know that I have no regrets.

"Skye, you connected with me when I felt like an outcast. I want you to remember that you're not alone. And even if you don't have your blood family with you, you have this family, this team, to lean on.

"May, I couldn't have asked for a better SO. You taught me focus and control and, of course, how to kick butt." Sita smiled.

"Fitz, I hope you always remember that time I flashed you." She chuckled. "You deserve even more for the brilliance of your work." She paused. "Oh, and marry Jemma." She winked.

"Jemma..." Sita started to choke up. "You've been my best friend. You were my gal pal. You listened, you shared, and you pranked." She smiled sadly. "I'll miss you so much."

Sita had to compose herself. "God, why is this so hard?" She sniffled. "Coulson. The best Agent SHIELD could ever ask for. You were a mentor, you were like a father, you were my confidant. Please, please don't ever give up. Please continue to show this team their true gifts."

Her red eyes were brimming with tears. "Grant... oh god, Grant... I..." She had to stop, taking a few deep breaths. "I love you so much. The thought of leaving you just breaks my heart so badly. But I couldn't have asked for a better companion or father for my child. Please keep Tristan safe. Give him love. Give him knowledge and give him my love."

She wiped her eyes. "So this is goodbye. But please, don't grieve. I'm in your hearts forever. I love you all." She gave one last smile. "And I'll always be your biggest fangirl."

()

Fitz and Simmons sat in the lab. "We could map her from the Walk," Fitz offered.

Simmons wiped her eyes. "Maybe. But we don't know even what dimension..." She trailed off as new tears formed.

He went to her, wrapping her in his arms. "Jemma, I'm so sorry."

She clung to him. "It'll be okay. Right?" She looked to his eyes.

He nodded and kissed her.

()

May knocked softly on Coulson's open door. "Mind if I come in?"

Coulson motioned the all clear. "Sure."

She stepped forward. "This wasn't your fault. She made the choice she had to."

He nodded some. "I know." He picked up a greeting card from his desk. "She made me this one day when I yelled at FitzSimmons about something." He opened it, reading aloud: "Whatever you do, don't think about a blue giraffe in a custard pie." He grinned and closed it. "She knew how to make people smile."

May nodded. "She cared with all her heart for this team."

He set the card down. "Do you think we'll ever see her again?"

May thought this over. "There's always a chance."

()

Ward broke down. Hard. He'd locked himself in his bunk after the video message from the one woman he'd let into his heart. Sita was gone. She had vanished right in front of him. And he couldn't do anything about it.

It took a full day before he could hold Tristan. The baby had his mother's smile, something that Ward was missing so much. But Tristan was a part of her that he could hold on to. Tristan was someone that he could tell the stories of their adventures to.

Sita would still be there, carried on in his memory. The love of his life.

His biggest fangirl.

The End?


End file.
